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CEHD Online

To help you prepare for a great career and thrive, CEHD offers online education that combines high academic quality with flexibility and convenience that fits your life. You can complete some bachelor’s, master’s and graduate certificate programs entirely online. Other programs offer at least some online courses. Connect with us and we’ll help you find what works best for you and your specific career goals.

Undergraduate degrees

You can complete the following programs entirely online. Expand to learn more and apply.

  • Child Development and Services

    Child Development and Services concentration prepares individuals to work with children, and their families, in a range of care and service settings. This concentration centers on the development of children, birth through school age, and the cultivation of skills, environments, and programs that promote healthy child development and outcomes.The concentration includes selection of courses within one of two tracks: 

    • Child Programming and Administration (fulfills State of Michigan requirements for childcare center directors) 
    • Child Life Foundations (provides fundamental knowledge for service as child life specialist)

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  • Family Studies

    Family Studies concentration prepares students to use preventative and educational approaches in a variety of settings to strengthen individual and family well-being across the lifespan. Students explore relationships among individuals, families and their environment and culture with the goal of improving quality of life within communities and society at large. Graduates of the program are eligible to be granted provisional status as a Certified Family Life Educator (CFLE) by the National Council on Family Relations. The Family Studies concentration can be completed fully online.

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View the list of all CEHD undergraduate programs.

 

Graduate certificates

You can complete the following programs entirely online. Expand to learn more and apply.

  • Adapted Physical Education (APE) and Positive Behavioral Intervention and Supports (PBIS)

    This Interdisciplinary graduate certificate is designed for teaching children with severe disabilities in a combined program structured in a way that allows students to develop professional competencies through the completion of a fully online program. The program prepares teachers to provide quality APE and PBIS services for K-12 children with severe disabilities in APE and SE classes. The program includes 27 credit hours or 9 courses.

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  • Early Childhood Special Education

    This Certificate is designed to provide both face to face and online options for students working to obtain their State of Michigan ZS endorsement (Early Childhood Special Education).

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  • Educational and Instructional Technology

    This graduate certificate is designed to improve your skills and knowledge in the strategic use of technological tools to help people learn in organizations of all types. Credits earned in the Graduate Certificate program can be applied to a Master of Arts degree if you decide to continue your studies.

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  • Educational Leadership: Central Office Certificate

    The Michigan Department of Education requires all school administrators to hold a valid School Administrator Certificate, and many school districts require their central office leaders to also have a Central office Endorsement. Students can obtain the Central Office endorsement by completing WMU’s Ed.S. or Ph.D. in Educational Leadership: K-12 Leadership concentration.

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  • English as a Second Language

    This graduate level certificate program is designed to prepare educators to meet the unique needs of English language learners in K-12 schools. Graduates of this certificate program will be eligible for the Michigan Department of Education’s English as a Second Language endorsement upon completion of one additional course (TEL 6220).

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  • Evaluation

    The Graduate Certificate in Evaluation is designed to prepare students to understand and work on evaluation teams and with evaluation-related activities. The Certificate consists of five, three-credit hour courses (15 total credit hours). Students who complete the program will be able to work on evaluation teams and with evaluation-related activities in the workplace as well as in external evaluations.

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  • Kinship Care Families

    The number of kinship care families, where grandparents and other relatives care for children whose own parents are unable to care for them, continues to increase in the United States and throughout the world. These family members experience unique challenges related to their living situation. Western Michigan University's Graduate Certificate in Kinship Care is specifically designed for professionals from varied fields to enhance their professional knowledge and skills when working with adults or children living in kinship care families.

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  • Mixed-Methods Research

    The Graduate Certificate in Mixed-Methods Research seeks to credential students for the growing need for sophisticated research skilled personnel to conduct and summarize social science research. Graduate students in this applied program will develop knowledge and skills related to designing, conducting, and analyzing mixed-methods research. This certificate program consist of five, three-credit hour courses (15 total credit hours). Graduate students in this applied program will develop knowledge and skills related to designing, conducting, and analyzing mixed-methods research.

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  • Positive Behavioral Intervention and Supports

    The Certificate in PBIS will prepare educators and related service personnel to work in schools to meet the unique behavioral needs of learners in K-12 environments through systemic, positive, prevention focused, and data-based decision making. With this certificate, educators and related service personnel will be able to collaborate with other school professions to plan interventions to meet the needs of students who present challenging behaviors.

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  • Teacher Development

    This graduate level certificate program is designed for school districts that wish to partner with WMU to provide job-embedded professional development focusing on school improvement. Teachers may enroll as cohort and focus on improving the schools in which they work.

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View the list of all CEHD graduate certificate programs.

 

Graduate degrees

You can complete the following programs entirely online. Expand to learn more and apply.

  • Adapted Physical Education

    Physical education teachers learn to provide adapted physical education for school children with disabilities in the least restrictive, most appropriate and most inclusive environments. Graduates gain the knowledge, skills and experience to teach students with disabilities things like fundamental motor skills, physical and motor fitness, and skills for aquatics, dance, games, sports, leisure and recreation.

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  • Early Childhood Education

    This Teaching, Learning and Educational concentration is for early care providers who teach in private programs and would like to increase their knowledge base and professional skills with a MA degree to become an administrator and/or elementary education certified teachers who would like to earn the ZS (Early Childhood General and Special Education) endorsement along with a MA degree.

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  • Early Childhood General and Special Education: Birth through Kindergarten

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  • Educational and Instructional Technology

    The educational and instructional technology master's program is designed to improve your skills and knowledge in the strategic use of technological tools to help people learn in organizations of all types. Credits earned in the Graduate Certificate program can be applied to a Master of Arts degree if you decide to continue your studies.

    Apply now Learn more

  • Educational Leadership: Specialist in Education

    Programs in educational leadership benefit working professionals who want to develop as leaders ready to handle the many educational challenges facing institutions and organizations in an era of accountability. The specialist in education will prepare you for leadership roles in educational administration positions and is appropriate if you are seeking a post-master's degree, but not a doctoral degree. In addition to the Ed.S. degree, a student can be recommended to receive Michigan Administrator Certification.

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  • Evaluation, Measurement and Research

    The Ph.D. program in Evaluation, Measurement, and Research in the Department of Educational Leadership, Research and Technology at Western Michigan University is designed for highly qualified students and seeks to prepare them as evaluators, assessment specialists, or researchers for leadership and teaching positions in schools, non-school organizations, institutions of higher education and government.

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  • K-12 Principal and Interscholastic Athletic Administration

    This educational leadership concentration is designed to prepare a student for the leadership role of being a building principal, as well as an athletic director. Students who complete this concentration will be recommended to receive, from the state of Michigan, the School Administrator Certificate. Programs in educational leadership benefit working professionals who want to develop as leaders ready to handle the many educational challenges facing institutions and organizations in an era of accountability.

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  • K-12 Principal Leadership

    This educational leadership concentration is designed to prepare a student for the leadership role of being a building principal. Pending approval from MDE, students who complete this concentration will be recommended to receive, from the state of Michigan, the School Administrator Certificate. Programs in educational leadership benefit working professionals who want to develop as leaders ready to handle the many educational challenges facing institutions and organizations in an era of accountability.

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  • Literacy Studies

    Reflective practitioners are passionate learners who embrace diversity, actively inquire and reflect upon their own practice and nurture the development of new knowledge and skills. This is accomplished through a process of continuous professional, intellectual and social growth. Students will make connections between and among research, theory, policy and practice to evaluate the teaching-learning process, inquire into how teaching can be improved and develop efficacy based on best practices.

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  • Organizational Change Leadership

    The M.A. in Organizational Change Leadership addresses one of the most critical and sought after competencies required of leaders and managers today — the ability to lead effective change.

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  • Special Education: Behavior Specialist

    Program for general or special education teachers to pursue advanced preparation in positive behavior intervention supports and coaching behavior management. Candidates include general or special education teachers, principals, school psychologists, school social workers, speech pathologists, or other ancillary school staff.

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  • Sports Coaching

    Western’s M.A. program is nationally recognized in quality coaching education. The program’s curriculum has been accredited by the National Committee for Accreditation of Coaching Education (NCACE) at the highest level. Our program represents a core body of knowledge, skills and competencies that prepares coaches to excel at all levels of competition.

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  • Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages

    The M.A. in TESOL program is designed to prepare educators to meet the unique needs of English as a Second Language (ESL) learners in K-12 schools and in colleges/universities in the United States and abroad. Graduates of this master’s program will be eligible for the Michigan Department of Education’s ESL endorsement.

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  • Workforce Education, Development and Leadership

    The workforce education and development (WFED) Master of Arts program has options for those seeking to become career and technical education instructors, technical trainers in business and industry, and career development specialists. WFED for ideal for candidates that are already a certified teacher OR working professional looking to expand their knowledge of workforce education and training.

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View the list of all CEHD graduate programs.

 

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About the College of Education and Human Development

As the cornerstone of Western Michigan University, the College of Education and Human Development continues to build upon its rich tradition of excellence by facilitating the preparation and growth of pre K-12 teachers, human service professionals, innovative designers, and health and wellness specialists.

View a full list of all the programs offered from the College of Education and Human Development.