Ethical leadership in a complex and diverse world
Take the next step in your career with Concordia’s accelerated bachelor’s in communication and leadership. This interdisciplinary program equips you with the skills you need to be an effective, ethical leader in an organization of any size.
- Critical thinking
- Communication
- Leadership
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What makes a good leader? Many adjectives might come to mind; inspiring, knowledgeable, ethical, empathetic, wise, confident, discerning, and the list could go on. While all of these are traits of a good leader, none of them alone can adequately describe what leadership means.
Leadership requires a well-rounded, multifaceted set of skills. A good leader is knowledgeable. They excel in all forms of communication; conveying, receiving, and understanding thoughts and ideas verbally and in writing. A good leader is empathetic. They understand individuals and groups of people; what they need to find fulfillment in their work, do their job effectively, and what motivates them.
There isn't a single skill that you can work towards that will make you an effective leader. That's why Concordia's communication and leadership program draws from a wide range of disciplines to help you grow into a strong leader. Your critical thinking skills will be sharpened, so that you can analyze information and make good decisions in leading your peers. You will learn effective communication strategies, oral and written, as well as data visualization and communication, to help you clearly communicate, inspire, and persuade people. You will study collaboration strategies to help you understand and work with diverse groups. Upon completion of the program, you will possess the knowledge and skill to lead in organizations of all sizes.
Driven by Christian principles, this program also looks to Christ as an example of perfect leadership. "...even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve..." (Matthew 20:28). Christ is the head of the Church and leads the Church by service to Her. Even the God of all creation humbles Himself and sacrifices His own interests for the good of His people. As Christians, we look to Christ's example of servant leadership.
This accelerated bachelor's degree program is offered online through our sister campus in Mequon, WI.
Program outcomes
Students will:
- Apply concepts of Christian faith to contemporary issues
- Exercise ethical leadership while working collaboratively with diverse individuals and groups
- Integrate interdisciplinary knowledge to confront real-world problems
- Think creatively and critically
- Communicate effectively and professionally, both orally and in writing
- Evaluate, analyze, and present data
Recommended for you (based on programs you’ve viewed)
- Online
All students applying for admission to the program must submit:
- Official transcripts from all post-secondary institutions attended. In cases where the student has fewer than 60 transferable credits, an official high school transcript or proof of GED must also be submitted.
Angela Belz Ph.D., M.S.
Department Chair - Qualitative Programs, Assistant Professor
Phone: (262) 243-2174
Bio
Angela Belz teaches marketing, public relations, business communication and leadership administration. Her research focuses on how organizational systems and business principles can improve the conditions of under-served populations. She has recently added neuromarketing hardware and software to enhance the scientific quantitative study into consumer and human behavior.
Education
- Ph D - Leadership for the Advancement of Learning and Service, Cardinal Stritch University (2018)
- MS - Student Personnel Administration, Concordia University Wisconsin (2007)
- BA - Business Administration , Ottawa University (2004)
Research Interests
- Public Perception and the Media
- Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Teaching Interests
- Public Relations and Social Media
- Organizational Communication and Leadership
Dennis Evans
Department Chair - Math Department, Associate Professor
Phone: (262) 243-4435
Bio
B.A. Mathematics and B.S. Mathematics from University of Missouri - Columbia<br>M.A. and Ph.D. Mathematics from University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana
Education
- Ph D - Mathematics, University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana (1992)
- MA - Mathematics, University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana (1990)
- BA - Mathematics, University of Missouri - Columbia (1986)
- BS - Computer Science, University of Missouri - Columbia (1986)
Research Interests
- Real Analysis
- Topology of Infinite Dimensional Metric Linear Spaces
Teaching Interests
- Real Analysis
- Logic and Methods of Proof
Elizabeth L. Evans Ph.D.
CELT Director, Professor
Office: Rincker Hall R008
Phone: (262) 243-4283
Bio
Elizabeth Evans serves as the Director of the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching and the program director of the Graduate Education certificate in Adult and Community Education. She has worked at Concordia since 1998, including work with adult learners and curriculum for 14 years in the accelerated learning program. She serves as an HLC Peer Reviewer and supports the advancement of assessment of student learning at the program level at CU. Her career experience prior to Concordia was in the insurance industry and non-profit community organizations.
Education
- Ph D - Urban Education, Adult and Continuing Education Leadership, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee (2010)
- MS - Administrative Leadership of Adult and Continuing Education, Human Resource Development, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee (1995)
- BS - Sociology/Social Work, Carroll University (1980)
Contributions
- Evans, E. (2017). Quality Improvement in Student Learning Outcomes Assessment: Faculty Learning, Collaboration, Engagement, and Transparency 29 (3, pp. 3). Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA: Assessment Update: Progress, Trends and Practices in Higher Education/ Jossey Bass Wiley Periodical. http://onlinelibr...
- Evans, E. (2012). Faculty engagement in program-level outcomes assessment: A learning process. In J. E. Groccia & L. Cruz (Eds.), To Improve the Academy: Resources for Faculty, Instructional and Organizational Development, 31, (pp. 37-52). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. 31 Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA: To Improve the Academy: Resources for Faculty, Instructional and Organizational Development; Jossey-Bass. https://books.goo...
Presentations
- Evans, E. (2021). Facilitation: Sage on the Stage vs. Guide on the Side. Oral Presentation. International Servant Leader Summit . vrtual online.
- Evans, E. & (2021). Implementing Blackboard’s Assessment Solution: How Concordia University Wisconsin Took a Local and Global Approach. Oral Presentation. Webinar Series " Implementing Blackboard’s Assessment Solution". Virtual online.
- Dvorak, L. & Evans, E. (2021). Developing the Faculty for Future Teaching Effectiveness: Here? There? Everywhere?. Oral Presentation. Higher Learning Commission Annual Conference. Virtual.
- Evans, E. (2017). Faculty Work Well-being and Work Engagement Survey, Pilot. Poster. Concordia Faculty Scholarship Week Poster Session. Mequon Campus.
- Evans, E. (2017). (60 minute Workshop) Indicators of "Good Practice" in Program Assessment: Faculty Collaborating for Quality Outcomes and Tools, Meaningful Evidence, Improvement and Transparency. Oral Presentation. Assessment Institute at Indianapolis . Indianapolis, IN.
Research Interests
- Higher education faculty work
- Adult spiritual development
Teaching Interests
- Adult and Community Education Leadership
- Human Dynamics of Organizations and Change
Randall L. Ferguson Ph.D., M.Div., M.A., B.A.
Associate Professor
Phone: (262) 243-4273
Bio
Dr. Ferguson teaches 1/2 time in the Communication Department. He has authored textbooks for Interpersonal Communication and The Freshman Seminar. He also serves 1/2 time as Director of Christian Service within Campus Ministry.
Education
- Ph D - Speech-Communication, University of Minnesota (1998)
- M Div - Theology, Concordia Seminary, St. Louis (1987)
- MA - Interpersonal and Public Communication, Bowling Green State University (1984)
- BA - Communication, Concordia College, Ann Arbor (1982)
Research Interests
- Service learning
- Servant leadership
Teaching Interests
- Interpersonal Communication
- Perspectives on Christian Service
Stephanie Guedet Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Office: Luther Hall 208L
Phone: (262) 243-4254
Education
- Ph D - English Studies, Illinois State University (2017)
- MA - English , Bradley University (2003)
- BA - English , Taylor University (1991)
Research Interests
- Autobiography/Life writing
- Cultural Rhetorics
Teaching Interests
- Composition
- Rhetoric
Brian J. Gunderson
Department Chair - Department of Multicultural Studies, Associate Professor
Phone: (262) 243-2103
Bio
Brian Gunderson teaches a wide range of Spanish courses at CUW. He is chair of the Modern Languages department. His research includes 20th and 21st Century Latin American Literature; in particular, he is interested in ethnic studies through literature and is the author of a book on the African heritage as seen through this time period's literature in Latin America where an African presence is purported to not exist.
Education
- Ph D - Spanish, Western Michigan University (2014)
- MA - Spanish, Western Michigan University (2008)
- MS - Adult, Continuing and Higher Education Administration/Leadership, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (2021)
- BA - Spanish Studies B.A., German Studies B.A., University of Minnesota-Duluth (2005)
Presentations
- Gunderson, B. (2020). Finding Jesus at the Border: A Lutheran Theological Approach to Guiding Students to an Understanding Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric and Latinx Fiction in the George Floyd Era. Oral Presentation. Association of Lutheran College Faculties. Austin, TX.
- Gunderson, B. (2020). Latinx Representation as Required Reading, White Fragility and Make Your Home Among Strangers, by Jennine Capó Crucet.. Oral Presentation. Michigan Academy of Arts and Sciences Fall 2020. Southfield, MI.
- Gunderson, B. (2018). “La diáspora latinoamericana, los flujos migratorios y crímenes del estado contra sus ciudadanos: la vista desde el extranjero a sistemas de represión en Tu nombre en silencio de José María Pérez Gay”. Oral Presentation. 71st Annual Kentucky Foreign Language Conference. Lexington, KY.
- Gunderson, B. (2017). "Amor en los tiempos globales: Un barrio del D.F. local y sus implicaciones en la literatura mexicana detectivesca del siglo XXI en 'La esquina de los Ojos Rojos', de Rafael Ramírez Heredia". Oral Presentation. 70th Annual Kentucky Foreign Language Conference. Lexington, KY.
- Gunderson, B. (2017). "La ironía, lo carnavalesco y los flujos migratorios que impregnan las Meta-narrativas de la Modernidad en 'Lejos de donde' de Edgardo Cozarinsky". Oral Presentation. Michigan Academy of Science, Arts & Letters. Kalamazoo, MI.
Research Interests
- Ethnic Studies in Literature of 20th and 21st Century Latin America
- 21st Century Globalization in Mexican Literature
Teaching Interests
- Modern Latin American and Spanish Literature
- Cervantes, Medieval Spanish and Colonial Literature
Brian Harries PhD
Department Chair - English, Associate Professor
Office: Luther Hall 208L
Phone: (262) 243-4362
Bio
Brian Harries teaches early British literature in the Concordia English department, with an emphasis primarily on the late Middle Ages and Renaissance. He collaborates regularly with the History and Theater departments, and his research focuses on the Elizabethan theater as a site of cultural identity formation during the turbulent 16th century.
Education
- Ph D - English--Shakespeare and Renaissance Drama, University of Kansas (2010)
- MA - English--British/American Literature and Literary Theory, University of Kansas (2005)
- BA - English, University of Kansas (2002)
Contributions
- Harries, B. & Mobley, S. (2020). Shared Inquiry and (A)Synchronicity: Online Learning in a Freshman Humanities Class 51 (S01). (pp. S01). Sixteenth Century Studies.
- Harries, B. (2019). The Fall of Mediterranean Rome in Titus Andronicus State College, PA: Mediterranean Studies. http://www.psupre...
- Harries, B. (2018). Christian Free Will and Reader Free Will in Ryan North's To Be or Not to Be. Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Teaching. 25 (2, pp. 2). Wichita, Kansas: Wichita State University.
- Harries, B. (2017). Luther and Wittenberg in Elizabethan Drama. Encyclopedia of Martin Luther and the Reformation. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
- Harries, B. (2017). Lutheran Influence in Europe and Britain. The Encyclopedia of Martin Luther and the Reformation. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
Presentations
- Harries, B. (2019). "'The Spirit I've Seen May be the Devil': Luther and the Power of Angels and Demons in Hamlet. Paper. Shakespeare Association of America Annual Meeting. Washington, DC.
- Mobley, S. & Harries, B. (2019). The Virtues of Virtue: A Great Conversation in Western Education. Keynote/Plenary Address. Classical Education Conference. Mequon, WI.
- Harries, B., Moore, G., Kleinschmidt, M. & Warner, M., (2018). Unsettled Strangers: Early Modern Construction of Self and Gender in Foreign Spaces. Paper. Attending to Early Modern Women. Milwaukee, WI.
- Harries, B. (2018). Incorporating Early Textual Editing into an Undergraduate Research Project . Paper. Shakespeare Association of America. Los Angeles, CA.
- Harries, B. (2018). "I Know Her for a Spleeny Lutheran": An Elizabethan View of Wittenberg and Its Reformers. Keynote/Plenary Address. Bards in the Arb Lecture Series. St. Peter, MN.
Research Interests
- Elizabethan Drama, English 16th-century culture
- The Reformation
Teaching Interests
- Shakespeare, Medieval and Renaissance Literature
- Grammar and Language History
Matthew Hurtienne Ph.D.
Associate Dean - School of Business, Associate Professor
Phone: (262) 243-2024
Education
- Ph D - Education and Human Resource Studies, Colorado State University (2015)
- MS - Organizational Leadership, Norwich University (2009)
- BS - Management, Southern Illinois University (2007)
- Instructional Design Mastery Series , Online Learning Consortium (2016)
Research Interests
- Employee Engagement
- Organizational Effectivness
Teaching Interests
- Human Resource Development
- Organizational, Performance, and Change
Sandra Jahns
Bio
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Education
- MBA - Marketing, University of Wisconsin, Whitewater (1983)
Research Interests
- Annual Study on Conflict/college students
- Analyze current thinking regarding communication and relationships with God's Word
Teaching Interests
- Interpersonal Communication
- Public Speaking
Susan Mobley
Department Chair - History, Professor
Phone: (262) 243-4276
Bio
Susan Mobley teaches courses on various eras of European history, as well as the Latin language. Her research focuses on the history of education in Western Civilization. She has presented at numerous conferences, has authored articles for various publications, and has appeared on several LCMS media programs.
Education
- Ph D - European History, University of Wisconsin-Madison (1998)
- MA - European History, University of Wisconsin-Madison (1993)
- BA - Journalism/Professional Writing, University of Oklahoma (1991)
Contributions
- Harries, B. & Mobley, S. (2020). Shared Inquiry and (A)Synchronicity: Online Learning in a Freshman Humanities Class 51 (S01). (pp. S01). Sixteenth Century Studies.
Presentations
- Mobley, S. (2019). Mandating Education: State School Ordinances in Württemberg (1559) and Bavaria (1569). Paper. Sixteenth Century Studies. St. Louis, MO.
- Mobley, S. & Harries, B. (2019). The Virtues of Virtue: A Great Conversation in Western Education. Keynote/Plenary Address. Classical Education Conference. Mequon, WI.
- Mobley, S. (2018). The Paedagogium at the University of Ingolstadt, 1526-1588: An Educational Reform Project. Paper. Sixteenth Century Studies Conference. Albuquerque, NM.
- Mobley, S. (2017). Lutheran Liberal Arts: The Arts Curriculum at the Universities of Tübingen and Wittenberg in the 1550s. Paper. Sixteenth Century Studies Conference. Milwaukee, WI.
- Harries, B. & Mobley, S. (2017). Seeding Grass Roots Discussions: Equipping Administrators to Foster Faculty Engagement with Mission, Identity, and External Constituencies. Oral Presentation. ACAD/AAC&U Annual Conference "Telling Our Story, Making Our Case: from Classrooms to Constituencies". San Francisco.
Research Interests
- History of education in the West
- Liberal Arts/Classical Education
Teaching Interests
- Renaissance/Reformation
- Medieval and Byzantine civilizations