Lynchburg College will offer a new M.Ed. in Reading degree beginning in the fall of 2007. The 36-hour program will lead to a reading specialist endorsement and will include a six hour practicum in which students will provide tutoring for school age students who have difficulty reading. Courses in the curriculum will be available during the fall and spring semesters in the evening and during the College’s summer sessions.
The new program will focus on assessment and remediation of reading problems, explicit reading and literature instruction, writing technology, and research methodology. "Our new program is based on the belief that in a rapidly changing society, literacy holds the key to success in the personal, professional, and civic lives of our children," said Dr. Susan Thompson, associate professor of curriculum, instruction, and reading, who will serve as coordinator of the program. "Students benefit from broad-based and comprehensive approaches to teaching reading, and these programs must be led by expert reading teachers and specialists," she added.
According to recent data from the Virginia Department of Education, reading specialists are in critical shortage. With the institution of the national Reading First Program, a result of No Child Left Behind, reading specialists are needed to teach in classrooms, work with students on an individual basis, supervise classroom teachers, and design reading programs. Lynchburg College’s program will address these needs in addition to providing coursework that will prepare graduates to become specialized professionals who can work with students or serve as school-wide or district-wide supervisors of reading teachers and programs.
Lynchburg College recently added an M.A. in English to its Graduate Studies Program and is exploring an M.A. in history. The College currently offers six other M.Ed. concentrations in community counseling, school counseling, curriculum and instruction, educational leadership, science education, and special education. LC also offers an M.B.A. degree program that features alternative concentrations in health services management and financial services.
Various forms of financial aid are available to students wishing to pursue a graduate degree including graduate assistantships as well as numerous partial scholarships through special endowed funds for both full and half-time students.
Applications are now being accepted for the M.Ed. in Reading, and further information can be obtained by calling 434-544-8383, e-mailing gradstudies@lynchburg.edu, or visiting http://www.lynchburg.edu.