By Jane Sevier
For professionals seeking new skills in leadership who also want to understand and address emerging social problems, Vanderbilt Peabody College has created a new master’s degree.
Developed by expert, interdisciplinary Peabody faculty, classes in the Master’s in Leading Organizations program (MLO) are tailored to apply each student’s work experience and prepare them for leadership in for-profit, nonprofit, government, educational and startup organizations. The new program will be delivered online.
“We value diverse perspectives,” said Sayil Camacho, MLO program director. “We’re about amplifying diversity, equity and inclusion in a meaningful way. It’s a part-time program built for people who are working full-time jobs. We’re looking at your work experience and what you envision for yourself within and beyond the organization. And we want to make sure that we’re here to prepare you for the next step.”
Housed in the Department of Leadership, Policy, and Organizations, the MLO program cuts across domains. Students will learn from instructors from different sectors of the economy and in different types of organizations, as well as have access to the cutting-edge research being done at Peabody. At its core, the program is designed to leverage scholarship to solve practical problems in organizations of all kinds. Not only does it include traditional content focused on research methods, it is oriented to evidence-based practice.
“The MLO faculty come from different disciplines and bring a range of experiences,” said department chair Carolyn Heinrich, Patricia and Rodes Hart Professor of Public Policy, Education and Economics. “This program will give graduates the skills not only to improve their own organizations, but—if they wish—to move from one organization to another, one type of organization to another, and to be effective leaders in each.”
The 30-credit-hour program can be completed in 18 months over five semesters. The first cohort will enter in January 2021.
For more information or to start an application, visit peabody.vanderbilt.edu/programs/leading-organizations-med.