March 2, 2021

Henderson State University’s School of Business has added three new concentrations to its MBA program, including aviation management, data science, and engineering management.

The proposals were approved by the Arkansas Department of Higher Education Coordinating Board in January, and will be offered beginning this summer.

The Coordinating Board also approved Henderson’s proposal for an M.S.E. in Teacher Leadership, which gives educators an opportunity to earn a degree that prepares them to provide leadership and mentorship to other classroom teachers.

All of the MBA concentrations at Henderson can be completed online. They will help match the needs of employers with the skill sets that Henderson delivers, said Dr. Marc Miller, School of Business dean.

“Prior to this change, our MBA was for general managers, and provided a wide variety of tools for future business leaders,” Miller said. “We still have the high quality MBA that prepares our graduates for multiple career paths, but we are now adding new focus areas.”

The engineering management focus is a collaboration with the Department of Engineering.

“Rick McDaniel, chair of the engineering and physics department, helped us create the curriculum that will add the management element to the engineering curriculum,” Miller said. “In a little more than five years, a student can leave Henderson with a degree in engineering and an MBA.

The aviation management concentration adds courses in aviation management and trends, as well as airport management.

Miller said the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that employment of administrative service managers, such as those found in aviation administration, was expected to grow six percent between 2019 and 2029.

The data science concentration was added to help meet the growing demand for analysts.

“The need for data scientists and data analysts within the state and nation is growing extremely fast,” Miller said. “At this time, the focus consists of two courses in data visualization and data analytics, but will expand over the next year to four courses in the concentration.”

All of the courses are designed to be completed in seven-week terms, and the entire MBA can be done in 14 months, Miller said.

Go to hsu.edu/mba for more information about the program.

The Master of Science in Teacher Leadership is based on a previous degree, but the core courses have been enhanced based on feedback from school district partners. 

“This updated degree gives those with leadership aspirations a path to advance into teacher leadership roles,” said Dr. Celya Taylor, dean of Teachers College Henderson. “Teachers can expand their leadership potential beyond the classroom while maintaining their instructional impact and student connections within their own classrooms.”

The teacher leadership degree is built around an updated online core of 18 hours that can be used to obtain the instructional facilitator licensure endorsement and teacher leadership licensure designation.

The remainder of the 30-36 hour degree includes an emphasis area selected by the teacher. Providing even greater flexibility, the degree plan allows teachers to select an interdisciplinary option and create their own emphasis area based upon their leadership goals.

For more information about all the degrees offered in the Department of Advanced Instructional Studies and Special Education, go to hsu.edu/teacher-leadership, or contact Dr. Charlotte Wright, department chair, at [email protected].

Registration begins in April for summer and fall courses.