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School of Education

The Vanguard University School of Education can help you be the kind of educator who brings love and wisdom to your students, school and community.

 The School of Education offers on campus bachelor's degrees in Liberal Studies, accelerated teaching credential programs (ITEP) that can be completed along with a bachelor's degree in four years in Liberal Studies, Biology, English, History & Political Science and Music. We also offer an online bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education, credential programs integrated with an MA in Education, and MA programs and credential programs and certificates for those who already have a bachelor's degree.

If you are interested in teaching elementary, middle, or high school, or if you want to pursue an advanced degree or specialized training, Vanguard University's School of Education has a program and team that will support you every step of the way. 

 

The School of Education by the Numbers

24%

growth in undergraduate ITEP program enrollment

10

average class size for credential programs

4.9/5

teaching credential candidate rating of their experience of Connectedness and Spiritual Formation at VU

28

public school districts served by key partner Orange County Department of Education

About our Programs

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Liberal Studies

Offering a traditional BA in Liberal Studies, a BA in Liberal Studies with Integrated Teacher Education Program (ITEP), and a minor in Elementary Education. 

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Early Childhood Education

Offering a BA in Early Childhood Education with multiple concentrations, a minor, and two certificate options, all in online formats. 

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Graduate Program in Education

Offering an MA in Education in Curriculum and Instruction and an MA in Educational Leadership, four different teaching credential programs and a Teacher Advancement Program.

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Why Study at the School of Education?

At Vanguard University's School of Education, Education for Love and Wisdom is the foundation for everything we do. You are not a number, but a person of infinite value. That means you will flourish here in ways that go beyond what you could have imagined.

 

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Love & Wisdom

At Vanguard you’ll experience love and wisdom. Love means commitment to supporting the flourishing of students. Wisdom means gaining the knowledge you need and knowing how to use that knowledge to help students flourish. Being an educator isn’t easy. It’s a calling. It takes courage.

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Individual Guidance

At Vanguard you'll work with an invested staff and faculty who know you by name and are deeply committed to your success. Here you'll find a team that will walk with you through every step of your program.

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Powerful Learning Experiences

You will have classes with outstanding faculty bringing you the latest in educational strategies, brain science and compassionate practice and you'll engage learning beyond the classroom through field trips and hand-on experiences.

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Connectedness & Community

You will become part of a supportive cohort of students and you’ll learn from caring faculty how to bring love and wisdom to your classroom, school, and community in ways that empower the flourishing of your students.

Student Success Stories

A Message from the Dean

We all want to make a positive difference in the world. How can we use our time and talents to make other people's lives better? We want to flourish and to facilitate other people's flourishing. Education is one of the best ways to do that.

My first year of teaching was amazing. Fourth graders are brilliant and creative. We learned so much together. Thirty years later, I got an email from one of the students who had been in that fourth-grade class. He was now a dad with teenagers and he and his family were thriving. He thanked me and shared that his time in that class had been a turning point in his life. Those moments are priceless for a teacher. We teach because we love it and have a sense of calling to teach. We see students grow and flourish. And sometimes we get to hear 30 years later that we played a role in the flourishing of a whole family.

At Vanguard University, we believe that educators can bring love and wisdom into their classrooms at a time when so many students have experienced enormous challenges, stresses and traumas. We welcome you to a community of learning that is also a community of caring!

Jeff Hittenberger, PhD Dean, School of Education

Education for Love & Wisdom: The Podcast

Hosted by Vanguard University School of Education Dean, Dr. Jeff Hittenberger, the Education for Love & Wisdom podcast shifts the current national narrative about education by focusing on the deeper stories about the millions of students, teachers, families, and community members engaging in education with compassion and commitment. 

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Dr. Jeff Hittenberger, host of Education for Love and Wisdom
Education for Love and Wisdom podcast guests

WE ARE VU

Learn more about Vanguard University and its 100-year history of  life-changing, Spirit-empowered Christian higher education.