A Ph.D. in Educational Leadership, Society, and Change is proposed to prepare those interested in forging a new type of P-16+ leadership that is ready to take on evolving 21° century challenges. Here, leadership is conceptualized as a critical, cultural practice. Graduates are equipped with the commitment, knowledge, and research acumen to enact equitable change in the context of ongoing reform. In increasingly unstable and divisive times, there is an urgent need for educational leaders who possess an expansive scope of critical and methodological abilities to ensure academic excellence for all, including those from marginalized backgrounds. Individuals become cognizant of dynamics such as race, class, gender, and ability in shaping future realities. Inside structure and culture, critical leaders envision democratic education despite massive economic restructuring, increasing social conflicts, growing numbers of families living in poverty, and demands for greater accountability. They also are critically reflective to engage successfully with broader social movements impacting educational institutions and attempts to control knowledge. The program draws from multi- perspective sociological, economic, and historical theories and fields. Emphasis is placed on educational leaders collaborating with the communities they serve to support and sustain student well-being.

The Ph.D. in Educational Leadership, Society, and Change resonates with the university mission. The D’Youville mission foregrounds “providing academic, social, spiritual, and professional development in programs that emphasize leadership and service...[and] teaches students to contribute to the world community by leading compassionate, productive, and responsive lives.” In the presented Ph.D., researchers uncover approaches to help prepare a new generation of critically conscious leaders who are dedicated to improving the social world and the academic lives of P-16+ students, especially those from marginalization backgrounds. The ethos of the program is those with privileged educational leadership platforms have the responsibility to advocate for a just and equitable future for others.