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Leadership Graduate Course Descriptions

LDSP 5050 - Professional Environment: Issues and Ethics. This course serves as an introduction to the discipline of ethics and values. 

LDSP 5060 – Communication Skills for Organizational Administration.  This course will examine communication skills in organizational settings.  Written, verbal and presentation skills are integrated components as research and analysis as it relates to organizations and their interactions within the business world.  (This course is equivalent to COMM 5110.  Students cannot take both courses to complete requirements for the degree.)

LDSP 5105 - Project Planning and Scheduling. Contemporary methods used in project planning and scheduling are covered.  Critical path method with computer applications and solution of case problems are stressed. 

LDSP 5110 – Organizational Innovation.  Leadership can impact change and innovation in the organization.  Circumstances often require balancing competing interests that include organizations, people, culture, and technology.  This course explores the role of leadership in advancing and applying innovation and creativity.

LDSP 5120 – Leadership Development Strategies for Organizations.  Looking at theory, research, and practice, this course focuses on the process and structure of developing others as leaders.  Topics include learning theory, models of training and development, mentorship, and the structuring experiences for leadership development.

LDSP 5130 - Leadership Judgement and Decision Making. This course explores decision-making and problem-solving in diverse environments.  Contrasting viewpoints and approaches to decision-making and problem-solving are examined via readings and cases.  Topics covered include decision ethics, impact on stakeholders, and framing.

LDSP 5140 - Influence and Persuasion. Examines Leadership as a process of reciprocal influence between leaders and followers to achieve agreed-upon organizational goals. Topics to be addressed include impression management, self-presentation processes, framing, attitude formation, groupthink, self-monitoring, self and collective identity, interpersonal influence, persuasion tactics and strategies, and the ethics of persuasion.

LDSP 5150 - Power, Ethics, and Leadership. This course examines the basic concepts and uses of leadership power and influence in the organization.  Topics include the use, misuse, creation, and dispersion of power, ethical implications in the use of power and influence, and the interplay of power and related ideas.

LDSP 5160 - Organizational Strategy for Leaders. Examines the strategic nature of leadership: how leaders create form and focus out of chaos to achieve goals.  Drawing from diverse disciplines, topics include the evolution of strategic thinking, application of strategy, game theory, and relationship of strategy to systems, information, and execution.

LDSP 5200 - Organizational Culture, Politics, and Change. This course takes an interdisciplinary look at leadership, organizational development, and change in organizations and groups.  Students are exposed to structural, cultural, and political challenges that leaders face.

LDSP 5210 - Globalization and the Professions. The purpose of this course is to assess the impact of globalization on professional life. 

LDSP 5300 - Survey of Best Practices in Leadership. This course examines theory, research, and practice to equip current and future leaders.  Concepts covered include power and influence, decision making, leading teams, cross-cultural issues, and the leader/follower dynamic.

LDSP 5310 - Community Leadership. This course explores how individuals from diverse backgrounds lead organizations, groups, and teams in the community realm.

LDSP 5330 - Research Methods. The study and application of research methods appropriate to professional studies. 

LDSP 5350 - Diversity in the Workplace. In this course, an examination of the impact of diversity, culture, and ethnic origin on the work experience is used to better prepare employees to meet changes of cultural diversity in organizations.  Language barriers, gender, race, traditions, education, economic structures, and organizational philosophy will be explored and activities will reinforce acceptable behaviors in complex organizations.

LDSP 5420 - Applied Project Management. This course uses project examples, analogies, artifacts, and terminology to solidify understanding of behavioral, interpersonal, situational, and technical aspects of project management. Credentialing associated with Project Management Institute (PMI) certification is covered.

LDSP 5560 - Small Group Leadership. Students will develop and explore their leadership skills related to leading groups capable of completing tasks to complement the organizational vision.  Students will examine the classic and contemporary literature on topics such as conflict, collaboration, negotiation, power issues, decision making, compromise strategies and team building. 

LDSP 5700 - Conflict Management and Negotiation. Negotiation theory, strategies and styles within an employment context are covered.