To prepare educational leaders to serve in PreK-12 schools and school districts. Its target audiences are part-time, post-master’s students who work full-time as teachers or other kinds of educational professionals in PreK-12 schools.
CAS stands for Certificate of Advanced Studies (CAS). For the Educational Leadership program at Binghamton University, CAS means a post-master’s graduate program. Think of the CAS as graduate-level professional development “in between” a master’s and a doctoral degree. In other states, the equivalent might be called an “Educational Specialist.”
CAS graduates may pursue future employment as staff developers, curriculum coordinators and program directors, as well as positions such as assistant principal, principal, assistant superintendent and superintendent. Successful completion of the CAS will permit Binghamton University to recommend qualified students to the State Education Department for either or both NYS administrative certifications: School Building Leader (SBL-Initial) and/or School District Leader (SDL-Professional). Recommendations will depend on students’ accomplishment of program requirements, an internship, leadership experience and performance on state-administered assessments. Students must pass the NYS School District Leader assessment in order to earn the CAS and the university's recommendation for SDL certification.
No. Universities cannot award certifications or licenses to serve as teachers or administrators --only New York State can do that. However, the CAS is specifically geared to equipping students with the knowledge and skills needed to be eligible to earn two kinds of certification awarded by the state of New York: School Building Leader (SBL) Initial and School District Leader (SDL) Professional. While universities can provide required coursework and other important leadership experiences, you would also have to pass appropriate NYS exams, be fingerprinted, submit evidence of having taken Violence Prevention and Child Abuse Recognition workshops and more when applying separately for NYS certification(s) to serve as an administrator.Note that the university can only award the CAS after you have successfully passed the NYS School District Leader assessment (http://www.nystce.nesinc.com).
32 graduate credit hours, beyond a completed master’s degree of at least 30 credit hours in a teaching or closely related field. The 32 CAS credit-hours consist of eight (8) four-credit-hour courses, seven (7) of which are prescribed (required) and one (1) of which is an elective, selected in consultation with a faculty advisor assigned upon admission. One of the required courses is an internship, accompanied by a seminar.
Yes. Consistent with current state regulations, leadership students must also pass the NYS School District Leader assessment and complete a “Personal Plan for Self-Improvement and Continuous Learning”. Information about Personal Plans is also included in the introductory leadership course (EDUC 673.) Information about NYS Leadership Assessments is at http://www.nystce.nesinc.com.
There are both University- and program-specific requirements for CAS applications. Completed applications are welcome anytime: fall, spring, or summer.
To be considered for admission to the CAS program you need:
Check to be sure you meet the minimum requirements for completed professional experience and teaching/pupil personnel certifications. Begin to gather and prepare the materials required for application and admission (listed above). Consider seeking permission to take a Binghamton University leadership course on a non-matriculated basis, to see if the program might be a good match with your interests and abilities. Contact Dr. Marilyn Tallerico with any additional questions at (mtalleri@binghamton.edu).
The seven (7) required courses are:
EDUC 673 - Leadership in Educational Settings
EDUC 672 - Processes of Supervision and Staff Development
EDUC 675 - Planning & Policy Development in Education
EDUC 608 - School Finance and Business Operations
EDUC 609 - Assessment for Student Learning & School Improvement
EDUC 606 - Curriculum Leadership
EDUC 692 - Internship
Additionally, each student will select one (1) elective, in consultation with her/his faculty advisor. Thus, a total of 32 credit-hours will be required, beyond a completed master’s degree of at least 30 credit-hours in a teaching or closely related field. As mentioned earlier, the 32 CAS credit-hours consist of eight (8) four-credit-hour courses, seven (7) of which are prescribed (required) and one (1) of which is an elective. One of the required courses is an internship, accompanied by a seminar.
| Fall | Spring | Summer | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Every Year | EDCU 675 (Policy) |
EDUC 672 (Supervision/SD) |
EDUC 673 (Leadership) |
| EDCU 606 (Curriculum) |
EDUC 608 (Finance/Business) |
EDUC 609 (Assessment) |
|
| INTERNSHIP | INTERNSHIP | INTERNSHIP |
Application and admissions procedures for the two programs are completely independent of one another and admission to the CAS program does not ensure admission to the EdD. Interested students must apply to each program separately, and different faculty committees make admissions decisions for the two programs.
However, matriculated Educational Leadership CAS students who are admitted to the EdD may use five (5) of the eight (8) courses required for the CAS towards the EdD program. Since the EdD includes 48 credit-hours of coursework (plus dissertation hours), successful progress in the CAS could mean that a student would be 20 credit-hours ahead toward completing the EdD.
In the reverse direction, all EdD students have room in their programs of study for five (5) elective courses. Matriculated doctoral students are encouraged to discuss with their faculty advisors the possibility of using five (5) of the seven (7) required CAS courses as their EdD electives. The five courses are:
- EDUC 673 - Leadership in Educational Settings
- EDUC 672 - Processes of Supervision and Staff Development
- EDUC 675 - Planning & Policy Development in Education
- EDUC 609 - Assessment for Student Learning & School Improvement
- EDUC 606 - Curriculum Leadership
Individual students must consult with their faculty advisors from both the Educational Leadership CAS and the EdD in Educational Theory and Practice when selecting courses for either program.
Dr. Marilyn Tallerico at mtalleri@binghamton.edu or (607) 777-2478.
You can view application forms and other basic instructions and regulations applicable to many graduate programs at Binghamton University by visiting the University’s Graduate School website at http://binghamton.edu/grad-school/. Note, however, that there are several CAS-specific application requirements that supersede the Graduate School’s information. For example, Educational Leadership requires its own completed Reference Forms that are different from generic graduate letters of recommendation. Additionally, the CAS program defines whom those references are to be from, and what the applicant’s Personal Statement must include, in ways that are distinct from Binghamton University’s general graduate application procedures. Please note that currently, GRE scores are not required for CAS applicants.
At the website of National Evaluation Systems, the company NYS has contracted with to administer these assessments. There you will find testing dates, registration deadlines, score report dates, fees, and more.
You should take the School District Leader (SDL) assessment in the semester before you expect to graduate. Why? Because passing this test is a condition for graduation.That is, you must pass the state's SDL test before being able to be awarded the CAS by Binghamton University. The other assessment, for School Building Leader (SBL), may be taken at any time, before or after earning the University's CAS.
Answer: Currently, a free resource available from the State Association of Administrators of New York State (SAANYS) is http://edu.ny.associationcareernetwork.com/Common/HomePage.aspx.
