Specialization in Nonprofit/Philanthropic Leadership and Management
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The specialization is intended for students with interest and experience in any of the three sectors (private, public, nonprofit), but with a special interest in Nonprofit and Philanthropic Studies. Its emphasis is on developing a student’s ability to engage in what Aristotle referred to as practical reasoning (i.e., reasoning that focuses on making decisions about the best course of action to pursue in particular situations by attending to empirical evidence and value issues and the relationship between values and empirical understanding). The program also is interdisciplinary; it introduces students to theoretical constructs from a wide variety of social science and humanities disciplines and encourages students to use these constructs in the course of deciding what courses of action to take in policy making and practice.
The specialization consists of 18 units of which 9 (and in some cases 12) are prescribed. Additionally, students enrolled in the specialization are required to do their dissertation research in an area pertaining to Nonprofit/Philanthropic studies.
The key objectives of the Nonprofit/Philanthropic Specialization are to:
• enable students to acquire functional knowledge of major topics in nonprofit research as well as competency in analyzing the theoretical and practical constructs in that research;
• provide students with a thorough understanding of trends in the sector including the implications of those trends on nonprofit/philanthropic practice and research;
• teach students, through direct involvement with the research process, how original research on the sector can be conducted in a variety of settings using a range of methodologies and different data sources (including, but not limited to, existing third sector data bases); and
• enable students to explore how research and theory, on the one hand, can be linked to policy and practice, on the other hand, through the use of a variety of pedagogical strategies that emphasizing teaching and learning though either direct or virtual experience.
Nonprofit specialization courses and experiences vary somewhat from student to student, depending upon a student’s experiences and prior academic background, as well as her or his career goals. For example, students who have not completed either the USD M.A. program in Nonprofit Leadership and Management or an equivalent program work with their advisors to fill knowledge gaps by taking appropriate graduate courses that comprise the nonprofit masters in that program. All of these students would be required to take Nonprofit Sector and Management Fundamentals. In addition, students planning careers in positions that will require them to do research throughout their careers (e.g., tenure track faculty positions in universities) are expected to take at least two additional research methods courses beyond the five research courses required by the Leadership Studies Ph.D. program.
"I am impressed with the quality of teaching offered by the Leadership Studies program. The professors seem genuinely interested in the class material, make an effort to be accessible to students outside of class, and work hard to create an optimal learning environment. Such enthusiasm and attentiveness on behalf of the professors makes the classroom experience enjoyable for all involved."
-Taylor Peyton Roberts
Specialization Curriculum
The Nonprofit/Philanthropic Leadership and Management Specialization encompasses 18 credits to be selected from a range of elective courses. Please refer to the Program Curriculum for the Ph.D. in Leadership
Studies for the full requirements for the degree.
Prescribed Courses (9 units)
LEAD XXX* Seminar: Overview of Research in Nonprofit/Philanthropic Studies (3 units)
LEAD XXX* Contemporary Issues in the Third Sector** (3 units)
LEAD 609 Evaluation Theory and Methods (3 units)
Additional Recommended Course for Students with Little or No Academic Background in Nonprofit/Philanthropic Studies (3 units)
LEAD 501 Nonprofit Sector and Management Fundamentals (3 units)
Highly Recommended Courses for Students Preparing for Research Careers:
LEAD 613 Advanced Quantitative Research (3 units)
LEAD 612 Advanced Qualitative Research (3 units)
LEAD 582 Survey Research (3 units)
LEAD XXX* Nonprofit Research Practicum** (3 units)
Additional Electives to be Selected in Consultation with Student’s Advisor
*Course has not been assigned a permanent course number yet and will run as LEAD 579 until a number is assigned.
** Pending course proposal approval as of 11/17/2009.
Additional Expectations
• All students who wish to be designated as participating in the nonprofit/philanthropic specialization would be required to do their dissertation research in an area pertaining to the specialization.
• In addition, if research courses include student-initiated research projects, students will be expected to design projects that focus on some aspect of the third sector.
Faculty Adviser Profiles
These faculty members are the primary faculty advisers for students in the Nonprofit/Philanthropic Leadership and Management Specialization.
