Welcome to all professionals interested in the Education Doctoral Program with a concentration in Special Education at the University of Central Florida. This website provides you with information about the opportunities for leadership development through this grant program funded by U.S. Department of Education.

This initiative is designed to address the critical gaps between the traditional preparation of urban special education mid-level administrators and the skills, knowledge, and dispositions needed for full implementation of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) of 2004. The effort will provide leadership development, mentoring and focused networking opportunities for mid-level special education leaders in urban school districts. The integrated curricula and practicum experiences will include cross-cutting work on the substantive content and strategies of high quality special education programs in urban settings as well as on related legal, fiscal, assessment and management-organizational issues. Particular attention will be paid to effective collaboration between special and general educators and to collaboration between educators and family, community and service agency representatives.

The University of Central Florida will partner with the Urban Special Education Leadership Collaborative, a national network of the special education leadership of more than 80 urban school districts. The project will provide three major outcomes:

(1) Development of a model program for an Education Doctorate (Ed.D.) degree in Curriculum and Instruction with a specialization in Special Education Leadership for urban special education administrators;

(2) Creation of a cadre of experts in special education urban leadership to act as a National Faculty which will aid in instructing the doctoral candidates and provide ongoing advice for the implementation and assessment of the initiative;

(3) Graduation of twelve (12) urban special education administration fellows with the Ed.D. degree to serve as leaders in their respective schools systems and as new members of the National Faculty which will form the core of a national network of urban special education leaders.