Master of Arts in Urban Community Studies

at Northeastern Illinois University USA

NEIU offers a Master of Arts degree for those individuals seeking an advanced degree in Community and Teacher Leaders. The program is designed to develop knowledge, dispositions, and skills to foster reflective, collaborative and transformative leaders in both community and school settings. Specifically, students will learn to harness the collective knowledge of community members and educators to have a positive impact on community and school success in both traditional and non-traditional settings; promote collaborative governance and leadership in communities and schools with a consistent focus on improved outcomes; model excellence in community leadership and teaching with a strong foundation in transforming the climate; and provide coaching, mentoring, and support to educators and community members to promote and influence change.  Instructional strategies include research, inquiry, analysis, and evaluation as well digital literacy and technology skills.  

Students may select one of two concentrations: community leadership or school-based teacher leadership. While both the Community and Teacher Leaders concentration lead to a Master of Arts degree, the Teacher Leader concentration also leads to a Teacher Leader Endorsement as recognized by the Illinois State Board of Education. Teachers who already have a Master's degree and an Illinois teaching license may take a subset of these courses to earn only the Teacher Leader endorsement. This school-based teacher leader concentration provides knowledge and skills related to leadership and mentoring, professional development, promoting school culture that focuses on student learning, using data to improve educational outcomes, and building collaborative relationships with stakeholders. The community-based leader concentration provides knowledge and skills that foster leadership in ethical and culturally sensitive public engagement, acknowledgement and consideration of the complexities of local and global communities, and leverages community assets to promote social justice.

The General Business Administration program trains business generalists. While General Business majors learn about different functional areas of business, including Management, Marketing, Accounting and Finance, they do not specialize in any particular area. This program is most suitable for those students who may not have strong interest in any particular area of business, and who may wish to start or work in a small or medium-sized enterprise where employees and managers will be required to exhibit a broad range of business competencies. Students can qualify for a variety of jobs in many sectors of business because of their broad based preparation in general business. This preparation is especially suitable for those who want to become entrepreneurs and interested in starting or managing small to medium-sized businesses. The General Business Administration major has two options.

The Master of Arts Program critically examines Latin American cultural forms of expression in their socio-historical contexts; develops skills to work with Latin American and US Latina/o populations in linguistically and culturally appropriate ways; and enhances career opportunities in education, government, international business, and the culture industries. Courses are regularly offered during the late afternoon and evening.

The Elementary Education Program provides students with knowledge of philosophical and psychological elements of  teaching and learning, general and specific methods of instruction, and clinical intern experiences of at least 200 hours in local schools prior to the full-day student teaching experience.  Students who complete this program qualify for elementary education licensure. Upon licensure, they are eligible to teach elementary school (grades 1-6).
Program Outcomes:

Students completing the Elementary Education major will:

• Develop highly reflective, creative, and critical teaching skills and demonstrate the knowledge to connect theory to practice.
• Show evidence of a wide repertoire of teaching strategies across the curriculum, and an understanding of inquiry and project-based teaching.
• Demonstrate deep content knowledge across the curriculum.
• Demonstrate knowledge of skills and practices in literacy instruction for diverse learners across the curriculum.
• Develop the skills and habits of mind to critique knowledge, curriculum, and standards, and analyze the political and moral dimensions of schooling and teaching.
• Develop the skills and knowledge to implement culturally relevant pedagogy that considers all forms of diversity; and show evidence of the ability to integrate this content into their classroom curriculum.
• Demonstrate their ability to use and integrate technology and media in their teaching and across the curriculum.
• Demonstrate their ability to use a variety of assessment approaches for instructional decision-making.
• Have an understanding of educational research and demonstrate the skills to locate and critique scholarly and relevant studies.
• Demonstrate excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Demonstrate the ability to create a classroom community that is safe, creative, caring, inclusive, and motivating for learning.
• Understand the principles of social justice, the role of schooling in a democracy, and the ability to teach for active citizenship and critical literacy.
• Demonstrate the ability to integrate critical thinking and problem solving in their teaching.
• Show evidence of professionalism, responsibility, integrity, and the ability to work collaboratively for the success of all students.
• Assume responsibility for their own on-going professional development, and understand the role of teachers as school and social change agents

Philosophy engages and critically analyzes the perennial questions of human experience, such as the nature of knowledge, meaning, reasoning, morality, the character of the world, God, freedom, human nature, justice and history. Philosophy is thus significant for everyone who wishes to live and act in a reflective and critical manner. Furthermore, the student of philosophy develops critical reasoning ability, acumen in textual analysis and persuasive writing skills useful for application in all disciplines and careers.

The Bachelor of Arts in Music is designed for students who wish to study music in the context of a comprehensive liberal arts experience, immersing themselves in both the practice and theory. The program's flexibility allows for students to pursue specific music topics to augment their interests, as well as broaden their post-graduate career paths.

Students admitted to this program will be enrolled as Music Majors. Participation in musical ensembles is a requirement of all music students, as well as attendance at live performances each semester. All students seeking admission to the program must perform a live audition.

The Communication, Media and Theatre (CMT) Department, as suggested by its name, includes three distinct, creative and demanding disciplines that are linked with their foundation in the study of communication in a variety of contexts. Students majoring in these areas will learn to become more proficient in the theory and practice of communication, media and theatre arts, while developing an appreciation of differing values and perceptions of the world in which they live.

Global Studies is an interdisciplinary undergraduate program that offers a major leading to the B.A. in Global Studies. The program provides students with the opportunity to investigate and analyze the globalized world and the transnational interconnections that are its hallmark. The innovative curriculum includes required core courses housed in Global Studies as well as cross-listed courses drawn from across the university. Through critical analysis of the contemporary world, carried out in coursework and through hands-on research and internship opportunities, students in the program accrue knowledge, scholarly abilities, and practical skills that will prepare them as informed global citizens and members of the 21st century workforce. The program will prepare students to pursue graduate education and careers in a wide range of fields, including international business and law, applied social sciences, community resources management, social services, and international development.

The Global Studies Program at Northeastern Illinois University is an interdisciplinary undergraduate program that offers a major leading to the Global Studies B.A. as well as a minor.
 
In Global Studies classes, students investigate and analyze life in a globalized world from cultural, economic, political, and other perspectives. 

The program is organized around five thematic tracks:

• Culture, Society and Identity
• Language, Knowledge and Representation
• Nature, Technology and the Body
• Power, Movements and Political Economy
• Violence, Resistance and Resolution

These tracks transcend traditional disciplinary, topical, and theoretical borders, providing opportunities for creative thinking, critical debate, and novel scholarship.  
 
Through critical analysis of the contemporary world, carried out in coursework and through hands-on research and internship opportunities, students in the program accrue knowledge, scholarly abilities, and practical skills that will prepare them as informed global citizens and members of the 21st century workforce. 

The undergraduate degree program in Chemistry at Northeastern fulfills the needs of students with diverse academic goals and prepares them for careers in industry and academia. The program is accredited by the American Chemical Society (ACS) and meets the standards established by the ACS committee on Professional Training.

The curriculum provides the requisite background for students planning to attend graduate or professional schools in chemistry, medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, and other professional health fields. In addition to the chemistry courses in traditional disciplines, the department also offers specialized courses in environmental chemistry, medicinal chemistry, pharmacology, toxicology and bio-organic chemistry. Students in the Chemistry program have the opportunity to conduct research with the faculty of the department of chemistry or participate in internship programs at various institutions and industry.

The placement of Northeastern Chemistry majors into the workplace shortly after graduation as well as their acceptance into top rated graduate and professional programs in the country validates the strength of our program. The Chemistry Department is proud of the success of all its graduates and strives to excel by designing new course work and programs to help Northeastern students achieve their educational and career goals.

This program provides graduate education for students planning careers in industry, business, teaching or planning additional graduate work or professional studies.  Four options in the program are available, the Separation Science Emphasis, the Business-Oriented Separation Science Emphasis, the General Program Emphasis, and the Chemical Education Emphasis. Students in the program can follow the Separation Science Emphasis in order to be prepared for careers in pharmaceutical, cosmetics, nutrients, and food industries. The Business-Oriented Separation Science Emphasis enhance the educational experience of the Separation Science chemists beyond what could be achieved if the Separation Science and the Business Administration were pursued independently.  It serves those who would like to advance into management positions. The General Program Emphasis prepares students to enter professional schools or to continue further graduate work in chemistry. The Chemical Education Emphasis serves in-service middle and high school teachers who attained a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and hold a teaching certification/license to become highly qualified teachers trained in advanced chemistry and pedagogical content knowledge of teaching science in secondary schools. They will also be well prepared to conduct research in the area of Chemical Education or teach at 2-year colleges.