Welcome to the Department of Organization & Leadership
Center for Adult Education
The Center for Adult Education is interested in research on adult and organizational learning; and on transformative learning for adults in a variety of settings. The Center has conducted award-winning research on literacy and has pioneered an innovative Action Research Professional Development program (ARPD) for literacy teachers through reflective practice and experimentation in the classroom. The Center has also conducted many formative evaluation studies of adult education initiatives using Perspective Discrepancy Assessment.
Center for African Education
Website: http://www.tc.edu/centers/cae
The Center for African Education promotes research and teaching about education, broadly defined, in Africa and the African Diaspora. Its central aim is to create a community of students, faculty, and staff with common interests and commitments to the fields of Education and African Studies. Interdisciplinary study and discussion across Teachers College and Columbia University are promoted through research projects, conferences, lecture series, and courses. The Center integrates the study of African education in different programs at the College. It also promotes linkages with African universities by hosting visiting scholars, policy makers, practitioners, and activists who will present their research and experience from different disciplinary and theoretical perspectives. The Center provides a forum for students to discuss their research and interests with African scholars, Africanist faculty, and colleagues at conferences, public lectures, and seminars. It is also preparing to undertake joint activities with educational institutions and international organizations in New York City and with universities, research centers and non-government organizations in Africa, Latin America and other regions of the world. In accordance with Teachers College's main focus on education, psychology and health, the Center will pursue problems within these domains as well as contribute to the College's understanding and promotion of educational equity.
Inquiry Program
Website: http://adonis.tc.columbia.edu/inquiry/index.htm
Institute of Higher Education
The Institute of Higher Education studies multicultural diversity in the curriculum, student body, faculty and staff of American higher education and regularly sponsors special symposia and conferences on these issues. The Institute also conducts research on the policies and problems, the organization, administration, and financing of educational programs of institutions and of state systems of higher education.
International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution
Website: http://www.tc.columbia.edu/icccr/
The International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution (ICCCR) offers a concentration in conflict resolution and a Certificate of Attendance that emphasizes theory, practice and research to address the needs of individuals, school systems, communities, non-profit groups, governments and private industry. The ICCCR's mission to help individuals, as well as institutions, better understand the nature of conflict and how to achieve its constructive resolution. The Center particularly emphasizes the importance of the social, cultural, organizational, and institutional contexts within which conflicts occur.
Housed in the Social-Organizational Psychology Program in the Department of Organization and Leadership, the Center embraces an interdisciplinary approach to conflict resolution and courses are open to both degree and non-degree students, for credit or non-credit, throughout the College and the University. For courses and their descriptions, please see the program in Social-Organizational Psychology.
Research and training in the following areas are also supported by the ICCCR: (1) fostering collaborative approaches to conflict as well as developing negotiation and mediation skills; (2) conflict resolution in schools and industry, helping individuals to learn to manage their own conflicts constructively; (3) creating dispute resolution centers in schools to help students, teachers, administrators and parents resolve conflicts constructively; and (4) research and development analyzing which programs work in schools and industry. Conferences as well as consulting services and training workshops based on sound empirical theory and research are provided.
The Center is directed by Peter Coleman, Assistant Professor of Psychology and Education.
J.M. Huber Institute for Learning in Organizations
Website: http://www.jmhuberinstitute.org
The J.M. Huber Institute for Learning in Organizations was established in 1999 to advance the state of knowledge and practice for learning and change in organizations. The Institute's research focuses on ways in which strategic organizational learning and knowledge creation and sharing enhance performance and change.
Working through partnerships with diverse organizations -- including business, schools, government and not-for-profit agencies -- the Institute conducts organizational assessments and action research. Its tools enable organizations to get faster results and better decisions by leveraging learning to improve performance.
The Institute and its partners work together to create and share knowledge and practical solutions. The Institute is located at Teachers College, Columbia University in New York City. The Huber Institute was created through a grant from the J.M. Huber Corporation. J.M. Huber Corporation, headquartered in Edison, New Jersey, is a diversified multinational supplier of engineered materials, natural resources, and technology-based service solutions, with annual sales exceeding $1 billion.
Klingenstein Center for Independent School Education
Website: http://www.klingenstein.org
The Esther A. and Joseph Klingenstein Center for Independent School Education sponsors four programs aimed at the professional development of independent school teachers and administrators and research activities that contribute to the advancement of independent school education.
The Joseph Klingenstein Fellows Award is granted annually to up to 12 outstanding teachers and administrators for participation in one semester or a year-long intensive program at Teachers College and designed to develop leadership skills in administrative or academic areas. Through reading, research, and discussion in seminars and course work at Teachers College and the other professional and graduate faculties of Columbia University, the program seeks to enlarge the perspectives of Fellows and prepare them to assume increased leadership responsibility within their sponsoring schools. As part of the program, Fellows may earn graduate credits to be counted toward a degree at Teachers College. Any teacher or administrator of an independent secondary school with a nondiscriminatory admissions policy is eligible to apply. The award includes a stipend, tuition allowance, a supplement for school age children relocating to New York City, and housing allowance for those who are resident faculty at boarding schools.
The Klingenstein Visiting Fellows Program for Heads of Independent Schools allows up to fifteen heads of schools to spend a month in residence at Teachers College, Columbia University focusing on problems of particular relevance to their schools, engaging in coursework, meeting in seminars to discuss educational issues, and enjoying the cultural resources of New York City. The program provides school heads with the intellectual stimulation of studying with outstanding professors and the opportunity for meaningful dialogue with independent school colleagues. The purpose of the program is to prepare those already in positions of leadership to face the challenge of leading independent schools in the 1990s. As part of the program, Visiting Fellows may earn graduate credit to be counted toward a degree at Teachers College or elsewhere. Any school head of an elementary or secondary independent school with a nondiscriminatory admissions policy is eligible to apply. The award includes full tuition and fees, housing, and participation in New York City cultural events. Sponsoring schools are asked to provide round-trip travel expenses.
The Joseph Klingenstein Summer Institute Award is granted annually to 50 teachers in the independent secondary school sector who have demonstrated outstanding potential for leadership. The Institute is geared toward increasing classroom effectiveness and strengthening commitment to teaching as a career. The Institute program encompasses a variety of activities that are designed to: provide a forum for collegial sharing, explore advanced methodologies in a particular subject area, stimulate fresh thinking and introduce new ideas in curriculum, methodology, and technique, and increase insight into the nature of educational practice.
Each participant has an opportunity to earn three graduate credits applicable toward a Master's degree at Teachers College or elsewhere. Teachers with more than one and a maximum of five years of experience are eligible to apply. Their school must have a nondiscriminatory admissions policy with regard to race, color, religion, or national origin. Candidates are judged on the basis of a personal essay, evidence of successful academic performance, and a letter of endorsement from the school head or principal. The award includes full tuition and fees, housing, and weekday meals. Sponsoring schools are asked to provide round-trip travel expenses.
The Master's Degree with a concentration in Private School Leadership is co-sponsored by the Department of Educational Administration and the Esther A. and Joseph Klingenstein Center for Independent School Education. The degree concentration is designed to enhance the professional careers of department heads, deans, division directors, and school heads or to prepare independent school educators for such positions.
The curriculum focusing on private schools includes courses in the administrative leadership of private schools, legal aspects of private school administration, financial management and marketing, and optional participation in an administrative practicum or consulting project. The special features of the program include site visits to private schools and a connection with a network of cooperating schools. The program may be completed in one year of intensive study or on a part-time basis. Candidates should have at least three years of teaching experience.
Principles & Practices of Organization Development
Website: http://www.tc.columbia.edu/odprograms/
Program in Organization Development & Human Resources Management
Website: http://www.tc.edu/odprograms
Superintendent and Scholars Symposium
Website: http://conference.tc.columbia.edu