Mastering Teacher Leadership The “Ohio Department of Education, through legislative approval, has implemented new standards that have affected the certification of teachers to teach in public schools and private companies in Ohio” (Schindler & Cooper, 2001). “Under the new standards, teachers certified to teach in 2002 or later will be required to complete a master's degree after initial licensure within a five- to seven-year period” (Ohio Department of Education, 1999). Wittenberg University, located in central Ohio, has historically offered professional programs in education for K-12 programs and other graduate studies. “Of the six other universities and colleges in Central Ohio, only two currently offer a Master of Arts in teaching” (Schindler & Cooper, 2001). College enrollment was expected to increase to meet the Department of Education's new teacher certification standard. The purpose of the Wittenberg University study was to “identify resources that could contribute to a master's program and explore the opportunity of offering a Master of Arts in Classroom Leadership” (Schindler & Cooper, 2001). MethodologyThe University of Wittenberg used a descriptive technique to determine the research design plan. First, “Wittenberg administrators conducted a brainstorming session to identify university resources for the master's program” (Schindler & Cooper, 2001). Subsequently, “administrators attended a retreat with a consultant from the Ohio Department of Education” (Schindler & Cooper, 2001). One outcome of the retreat was the benefits of a liberal arts-based program. Finally, the Wittenberg Center for Professional Development (WittCPD) conducted three focus groups. Two groups consisted of surveys marketed by the city of Springfield City, which sent them to 2,000 practicing teachers with a response rate of 763. The study had limitations that compromised the integrity of the results. As shown in the survey, there were many blank responses. Wittenberg University faced the task of identifying resources that contributed to the master's program, while the survey instrument was insufficient to measure the feasibility of starting the program. References Ohio Department of Education. (1999). Report on the quality of teacher education in Ohio. Government publication, Department of Education. Ohio Department of Education. Retrieved from http://cdm16007.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/singleitem/collection/p267401ccp2/id/837/rec/84Schindler, P. S., & Cooper, D. R. (2001). Mastering teacher leadership. Retrieved from www.wittenberg.edu: www.quirks.com/CGI-BIN/SM40i.exe?docid=3000:58911&%70assArticleID=409