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Learning about the Big Picture: Furman’s Ed.S. Degree
For educators interested in becoming leaders in their local school systems, Furman’s Educational Specialist Degree (Ed.S.) provides an opportunity, not only to advance their career, but to advance their understanding of how our educational systems operate. Today, we are joined by Katie Dell’Oso, a current Ed.S. student, to discuss the classes she’s been taking and what she’s learned during her time in our program. When out of the classroom, Katie serves full-time as an Academic Specialist for Greenville County Schools. The following is a portion of transcript from our interview:
How has the Ed.S. program impacted you?
“The Ed.S. in Educational Leadership has really taught me how to look at the big picture and how to make change in a community, not just a school or district, but how changes can impact the community as a whole. Every class we’ve had has helped me to make more informed decisions that will have a greater impact.”
Interpersonal and Group Relations in Education:
“We started with an interpersonal and group relations class that set the stage for the whole program. It was more of a deep dive into who you are as a person and some of your interpersonal strengths and areas of growth. It helped me reflect on where I was and what I wanted to accomplish in the next three years.
We did some book studies, and one of the books we read was about the importance of getting lost. As a teacher and educator, that’s not something that we always feel comfortable with. I remember being in that first class and learning that it’s okay to enter the unknown in any given situation, because with those unknowns and crossroads come challenges leading to great decisions that can shape the future.”
Data Analysis for Educational Leadership:
“This class really stretched our experiences with data from the research side of things. It was great to learn about the probability and statistics that go into the research side of education. Depending on which direction you want to go for your dissertation and doctoral degree, this class is very important.
Honestly, I love analyzing data from a teacher standpoint. That was my main role as an instructional coach: helping teachers analyze their data and then informing instruction based on that data. Since joining the district office, and with all the statistical tests that they talk about, I now have an awareness of what they are and what they mean.”
School Facilities and Planning:
“The Ed.S. degree at Furman has really shown us the different moving pieces of a district. As a teacher or building administrator, you get kind of caught up in the school-level decisions so facilities and planning is not something you get a lot of experience with other than the maintenance and operations of your personal building.
Since I’ve been at the district office, I actually have to do that kind of stuff all the time now. We have a new facility coming in at Roper Mountain and I’ve been able to look at it through the lens of how we want to be innovative in our curriculum, in our instruction, and how that impacts the setup in the facilities. Looking at population studies, how you find the land, and how you determine what schools and areas you need by looking at the educational specifications.
Even with COVID this year, knowing how much goes into the planning, and the maintenance of “how do we get the plexiglass in?” or “how big are our rooms?” I was so thankful that I had that course prior to this year, because it brings so much knowledge and awareness to it.”
Leadership for Social Justice
“The class with social justice has informed every single decision I’ve made since I took it. Whether it’s academics, community outreach, or grants that I’ve applied for through GCS. Everything I do revolves around equity and trying to help Greenville, as a community, be the best that it can be. By better understanding the long term goals of where the community as a whole is moving, I can help prepare our students to be college and career ready, and in turn meet the needs of the local businesses.
The Ed.S. just really gives you that wide view. You’ll gain an appreciation and an understanding of the impact that you make and that each person makes on a child’s life every day. A student’s first experience each morning is usually with their bus driver, then it’s with a cafeteria worker in the lunchroom getting their breakfast, and then the teacher is there. They have all of these different interactions with people. Realizing the importance of each one of those interactions, being positive, is impactful, because it is a whole-picture-view of how we impact the students and the community as a whole.”
Want to learn more about the Ed.S. Degree at Furman?