School of Business and Leadership

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Ronald W. Ferner , M.B.A., Dean 

Department of Organizational Leadership

William R. Bowles, Ed.D., Chair

Associate Professor

Timothy S. Yoder, Ph.D.

Adjunct Faculty

Jay R. Desko, Ph.D. 
Stephen M. Long, J.D.
Wayne K. Lynch, M.Ed.
Kim G. Palmisano, M.S.
Wayne Shaw, D.S.L. 

Churches, parachurch organizations, social service agencies, businesses, and non-profit organizations meet people’s needs by providing a variety of services and products. While each organization has a specialized function, unique culture, and diverse resources, there are also a significant number of similarities, including complex human and political dynamics, diverse values and goals, and specialized technologies and skills. Christians in positions of leadership need to develop the skills required to work in collaboration with diverse groups of people, create a healthy and productive environment, and cultivate transformational change which leads to long-term viability and effectiveness.

This program is designed for professionals who desire to better understand organizational dynamics, and who value collaboration with and insight from experienced peers. This program recognizes that all adult students possess insight and experience which, when shared with others, is a valuable contribution to the overall learning process. Students are provided with an environment that encourages reflection, innovation, dialogue, interdependency, and skill development.

The purpose of the Master of Science in Organizational Leadership Program is to contribute to the development of professionally effective and relationally healthy Christian leaders for the local church, non-profit organizations, and businesses.

Core Values

Excellence
The desire to manifest excellence through quality instruction, professional atmosphere, and a faculty of skilled practitioners.

God’s Truth
The belief that all truth is God’s truth, displayed in a commitment to the life principles revealed in the Bible and other truths discovered through our God-given capacities to inquire and learn.

Stewardship
The belief that leadership is a function of stewardship rather than ownership, and both leadership and “followership” are equally important in organizational effectiveness.

Personal Reflection
The belief that adult learning environments must be designed to stimulate learners to engage in personal reflection, resulting in a better understanding of who people are, why they act as they do, and where they can grow.

Action Learning
The belief that a lifelong journey of acquiring and applying knowledge in one’s personal and professional life is critical to individual and organizational success.

Respect
The belief that adult learning environments must be designed to demonstrate that people of different cultures, races, and perspectives have much to contribute to each other.

Interdependency
The belief that adult learning requires inter-dependency between learners and faculty, resulting in the sharing of ideas and testing of assumptions and perceptions.

Integrity
The belief that integrity is essential in all endeavors, resulting in honest communication and genuine trust.

Distinct Objectives

The student and his/her organization will experience immediate results from this learning journey. This exciting and rigorous action-learning program offers real-time opportunities to test the theories discussed in the interactive class environment. The faculty intentionally design and integrate project assignments that address the complex issues currently impacting the health and performance of organizations. Specifically, the curriculum offers definitive competency development for leadership and organizational development for practitioners through ten specific objectives.

Biblical World View Integration
The student will synthesize theory and research through a distinctly biblical lens to continually develop and inform a Christ-centered leadership practice.

Facilitation/Consultation Skills
The student will continually create an environment of dialogue to help others think through and learn to solve problems that impact organizational performance.

Relational Health and Group Process Skills
The student will engage all levels within the organization by developing mutually trusting and rewarding relationships through a commitment to courageous dialogue.

Influencing/Collaboration Skills
The student will use influence and collaboration as consistent practices to ensure that ideas are shared and tested to enhance organizational performance.

Communication and Presentation Skills
The student will communicate comfortably and effectively at multiple levels in the organization; utilize appropriate technology and tools to deliver messages to individuals, as well as small and large groups.

Personal Character/Ethics
The student will practice consistently within a clearly articulated ethical framework that includes principles and processes for individual and organizational problem solving and decision making.

Assessment/Diagnosis/Research Skills
The student will initiate data collection processes to identify and expose underlying issues that are impacting organizational performance.

Leadership Development Skills
The student will practice continually sharing new leadership learning in his/her environment to develop others in his/her circle of influence.

Organizational Strategy, Systems Thinking, and Intervention Design Skills
The student will integrate research with theory and practice to design appropriate interventions at multiple levels within the organization.

Critical Thinking and Reflective Practice Skills
The student will commit to critical thinking and reflection as tools for personal inquiry with a goal of elevating his or her practice and performance at individual and organizational levels.

Distance Education Options

The Organizational Leadership Program offers courses in creative configurations such as one-week modules, two-weekend modules, three-weekend modules, and summer sessions that limit the number of trips students make to campus. In addition certain classes do not need to be done in residence, such as the elective class that is offered via the Internet and the Action Research Project. Students may also gain advance standing (up to 12 credits) by transferring Bible/Doctrine credits earned at an accredited Bible college, Christian liberal arts college or university, or seminary.

The graduate programs of Philadelphia Biblical University enroll students from a number of states and international locations who are pursuing a graduate degree without sacrificing the quality and benefits that can only be attained through human interaction and connection. Below is a summary of beliefs regarding the use of technology in graduate study at the University.

1. Graduate education should be designed to meet the needs of adult students who have to balance significant life responsibilities, including family, career, and church.
2. Face-to-face real-time interaction is vital to a positive learning experience, including the importance of verbal and nonverbal interaction, emotional and spiritual support, and life-long relationships.
3. Classes must be configured to support the value and feasibility of face-to-face, real-time interaction for adult students by offering courses in creative ways such as weekend and one-week modules that limit the number of trips to campus.
4. Instruction can be enhanced through utilization of technology in the classroom and delivery of selected classes via the Internet.
5. Communication among faculty, enrollment counselors, and students can be made more convenient by utilizing e-mail and chat rooms.
6. Research can be advanced through utilization of research-related sites on the Internet.
7. Access to important information such as prospectus, curriculum, pre-course assignments, and syllabi can be enhanced via PBU’s IQ.Web. 

Student Profile for the Organizational Leadership Program

One of the enriching elements of the Organizational Leadership Program is the diversity within the student body. Such diversity provides the opportunity for exposure to unique experiences and perceptions, as well as valuable interaction which benefits all participants.

Career diversity: Students work in varied leadership roles in churches, businesses, non-profit organizations, government, and education.

Ethnic diversity: In a typical class, ethnic diversity is African-American, 24%; Caucasian, 61%; Hispanic, 3%; International, 11%.

Age diversity: The average age of students in the program is 40. Students’ ages range from the mid-twenties to the low sixties.

Gender diversity: The average class is approximately 53% male and 47% female.

Church diversity: Students in the program are evangelical in their doctrine and come from diverse church backgrounds, including Baptist, Non-denominational, Presbyterian, Independent, and Pentecostal. 

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