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Urban Leadership

PhD in Education

A cornerstone of strong communities are strong schools, and a cornerstone of strong schools are educational leaders who have the passion, commitment, and skills needed to promote educational equity and excellence among diverse groups of students. These are the educators CGU selects for our Urban Leadership (UL) program.

The School of Educational Studies’ UL program is specifically designed for experienced educators with 5+ years of experience in education who want to assume leadership positions in California’s school districts, county offices of education, and community colleges. Alumni of the program have used their CGU experience to propel themselves into careers as superintendents, chief academic officers, community college presidents, and elected officials.

Because the UL program’s cohorts are comprised of working educators, the urban leadership seminars are intensely relevant as your fellow students articulate the trends and phenomena they are experiencing. Your faculty shape the dialogue by helping the group understand these issues in terms of organizational and change theory, historical context, and research. Out of this synergistic exchange comes a deep conceptual understanding and applicable insights to address current and yet-to-be-identified issues. This design model develops true scholar-practitioners.

Leading to a PhD, the UL program prepares you to be a school leader that deeply engages in problems of practice with an adaptive dynamical mindset. This type of perspective-taking develops your knowledge of theoretical frameworks and research skills needed to promote educational justice. In turn, you will accelerate your ability to work with diverse and multiple stakeholders, and foster strength and excellence in our schools and communities.

Program Highlights
  • Earn a PhD instead of an EdD.
  • Benefit from coursework that is custom-designed to meet the needs of educators wanting to promote educational equity and excellence through leadership positions in California’s school districts, county offices of education, and community colleges.
  • Enjoy a cohort structure that facilitates the development of a lifelong network of educational change agents working throughout California.
  • Take advantage of courses that are offered at times to meet the schedules of working professionals. UL cohort classes are held on select weekends (Friday evenings and Saturdays. Discounted rates are available at a local hotel for those who want to stay in the area). You will also have access to additional flexible courses designed to meet the needs of UL students.

Program At-a-glance

  • 72 units

    required units

  • PhD in Education

    degree awarded

  • In Person

    modality

  • Fall

    program start

  • 4-6 years | full time*

    estimated completion time

Where You Can Find Our Alumni

Faculty

  • Frances Gipson

    Frances Marie Gipson

    Clinical Professor of Education
    Director, Urban Leadership Program

    Research Interests

    Urban schooling; distributed leadership; social-emotional learning; culturally relevant and linguistically responsive education; systems theory; learning and achievement; talent and leadership development; P-20 school policy

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  • Claudia Bermudez

    Claudia Bermúdez

    Clinical Assistant Professor
    Preliminary Program Coordinator
    Department of Teacher Education

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  • Portrait of Deborah Faye Carter

    Deborah Faye Carter

    Associate Professor of Higher Education

    Research Interests

    Higher education; transition to college; college student outcomes; access to college; race in education; mentoring, equity, and diverse learning environments in STEM

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  • Portrait of Carl Cohn

    Carl Cohn

    Senior Research Fellow
    Professor Emeritus

    Research Interests

    Education, Urban education, Education policy

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  • David Drew

    David Drew

    Professor of Education
    Joseph B. Platt Chair in the Management of Technology

    Research Interests

    STEM education, data science, model building, technology development and management

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  • Portrait of Delacy Ganley

    DeLacy Ganley

    Dean, School of Educational Studies
    Professor of Education

    Research Interests

    Culturally relevant education; resiliency and achievement of marginalized populations; intersection of families, community, and school; language acquisition; social capital theory; systems theory

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  • Gwen Garrison

    Gwen Garrison

    Clinical Professor of Education
    Director of Educational Evaluation and Data Analysis

    Research Interests

    Organizational effectiveness; diversity & inclusion; research & evaluation process; data systems; data management; data visualization and storytelling

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  • flame logo graphic

    Charles Kerchner

    Senior Research Fellow
    Professor Emeritus

    Research Interests

    Institutional Change in Public Education

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  • Portrait of Thomas Luschei

    Tom Luschei

    Professor of Education

    Research Interests

    International and Comparative Education; Economics of Education; Teacher Quality, Teacher Policy, and Teacher Distribution; Education Policy across the Americas

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  • Portrait of Susan Paik

    Susan J. Paik

    Professor of Education

    Research Interests

    Educational productivity; talent and leader development; giftedness and creativity; learning and achievement; psychosocial and environmental factors; urban and international studies; underserved students; Asian Americans and education; family-school-community partnerships; research methods, design, and evaluation

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  • Portrait of Mary Poplin

    Mary Simpson Poplin

    Senior Research Fellow
    Professor Emerita

    Research Interests

    Highly effective teachers in Los Angeles area; effective teaching methods; students, schools and poverty; differences between Judeo Christian and secular thought; Mother Teresa (worked with her in 1996)

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  • Portrait of Dina Maramba

    Dina C. Maramba

    Professor of Education

    Research Interests

    Equity and diversity issues in higher education; theory and practice in student affairs; college student development; access and retention; first-generation college students; Asian American and Pacific Islander populations; minority serving institutions

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  • Eligio Martinez

    Eligio Martinez

    Senior Research Fellow

    Research Interests

    P-20 education pipeline; college access and retention; community colleges; boys and men of color; middle school education; Chicana/o and Latina/o Students

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  • Portrait of Linda Perkins

    Linda Perkins

    University Professor
    Director, Applied Gender Studies

    Research Interests

    Women and African-American higher education, history and contemporary issues on women in higher education, especially Black women, global gender issues.

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  • Emilie Reagan

    Emilie Reagan

    Associate Professor of Education

    Research Interests

    Social justice and equity-oriented teacher education policy and practice; context-specific teacher preparation; teacher residency programs; assessment; accountability; quantitative methods; mixed methods

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  • Guan Saw

    Guan K. Saw

    Associate Professor of Education

    Research Interests

    Educational inequality; STEM education and workforce; rural education; college access and success; social capital; mentorship; teacher victimization; health disparities; research methodology

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Application Guidelines

University Requirements
Application Fee

$80 (fee is non-refundable)
Official Transcripts

Undergraduate/graduate

Applicants must submit a sealed, official transcript from every undergraduate and graduate institution that has granted the applicant a degree. Electronic transcripts sent to admissions@cgu.edu are also accepted. For undergraduate coursework, applicants are required to submit proof of a completed bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university. Unofficial copies of transcripts are accepted for review purposes, but official copies will be required upon admission.

Applicants currently earning a degree that will be completed prior to attending CGU are required to submit a transcript showing work in progress for evaluation purposes. Once the degree has been granted, a final official transcript documenting the degree conferred must be submitted to CGU.

International applicants are advised to review the International Transcript Guidelines for additional information on submitting international transcripts.
English Proficiency Exam

Required (international applicants only)

A valid score on one of the following examinations TOEFL, IELTS, Pearson PTE, Duolingo English Test is required of all non-native English-speaking applicants. The examination is not required for the following applicants:

  • Citizens or permanent residents of countries where English is the sole official language of instruction, e.g., Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Canada (except Quebec), England, Ghana, Ireland, Jamaica, Kenya, New Zealand, Nigeria, Scotland, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad, Tobago, Uganda, and Wales (see the CGU Bulletin for a complete list of accepted countries).
  • Applicants who hold an undergraduate or advanced degree, or will have earned such a degree prior to enrolling at CGU, from an institution in the US or in countries where English is the sole official language of instruction (see above).
  • Applicants who have successfully completed an academic English pre-master’s or intensive graduate bridge program from a nationally recognized, regionally accredited four-year college or university in the United States in the last two years, with submitted evidence of successful completion, and subject to curriculum approval.
  • CGU allows for an English proficiency waiver if the applicant has received, or will receive prior to enrollment at CGU, an undergraduate or advanced degree from an institution where English is one of the primary languages of instruction for the majority of courses in the student’s program. To receive the waiver, documentation must be provided by the applicant to show that English is the language of instruction at their university/college.

CGU’s school code for the TOEFL exam is 4053.

International applicants are encouraged to visit our International Applicants page for more information, including score requirements.
Resume

Applicants must submit an up-to-date copy of their resume.
Program Requirements
Statement of Purpose

Please submit a five-page, double-spaced personal statement that answers the following questions:

1. Who are you?
2. What is your research interest?
3. Why are you pursuing this graduate degree?
4. What is your professional and academic background?
5. Why CGU?
6. Why the School of Educational Studies?
Letter of Recommendation

3 letters required

When filling out the online application, please enter references acquainted with your potential for success who will submit a written recommendation on your behalf. In most academic departments, references from faculty members who can speak to your academic ability are preferred; applicants with substantial work experience may request professional references. Please do not enter family members as references.

You will be required to input information for your recommenders (whether they are submitting online or not) in the “Recommendations” section of the online application. Please follow the directions in this section carefully before clicking on “Recommendation Provider List” to input the names and contact information for each recommender. You will have an opportunity to indicate if the reference writer will be submitting online. These reference writers will receive an email from CGU with instructions on submitting an online recommendation.

Recommenders who are indicated as offline will not receive an email from CGU with instructions to submit. These reference writers can submit via traditional mail and should use the supplemental New Student Recommendation Form. Recommenders can also email their letter of recommendation to the Office of Admissions at admissions@cgu.edu.

Download the Recommendation Form

Key Dates and Deadlines

CGU operates on a priority deadline cycle. Applicants are strongly encouraged to submit complete applications by the priority dates in order to assure maximum consideration for both admission and fellowships.

Once the priority deadlines have passed, the University will continue to review applications for qualified candidates on a competitive, space-available basis. The final deadlines listed are the last date the University can accept an application in order to allow sufficient time to complete the admissions, financial aid, and other enrollment processes.

Fall 2025
Priority Deadline – February 1, 2025
Final Deadline (International) – July 5, 2025
Final Deadline (Domestic) – August 1, 2025
Classes begin – August 26, 2025

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Cost & Aid

ESTIMATED TUITION (CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS, NON-RESIDENTS, INTERNATIONAL)
Program 72 units
Tuition per unit* $2,070

*Based on 2025-2026 tuition rates.

STUDENT FEES (PER SEMESTER)
$245 Student Fee
$150 Technology Fee
International Student Services Fee**: $768 fall semester, $851 spring semester
**Applies to all international students (F-1 visa only) who are registered in coursework, doctoral study, or continuous registration. The fee is assessed each fall and spring semester for annual ISO accident and sickness plans and administrative fees. Subject to changes.

For estimates of room & board, books, etc., please download CGU’s Cost of Attendance 2025-2026.

review financial aid

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