This course serves as a general survey of U.S. government and political institutions within social, historical, and contemporary context. Students will discuss the basic principles of constitutional democracy within the United States with regard to founding documents, political institutions, the separation of powers, federalism, civil liberties, civil rights, and political participation. Students will also evaluate how the history of the United States shapes contemporary U.S. society and political debates.

This course is designed to introduce the student to Graduate Business programs, with emphases upon conceptualizing communication and communication processes in the context of organizations, management and career. Emphasis will be on technology, theories and models, qualitative communication research and presentations. Equivalent to BUS 600. 

The culminating course in the program offers emerging leaders the opportunity to synthesize and apply their knowledge by completing an organizational thesis project that addresses a relevant leadership challenge. Building on insights from their Master Leadership Portfolio of self-assessments, course participants evaluate organizational practices, identify challenges, and uncover opportunities for improvement. Emphasis is placed on evidence-based decision-making, strategic analysis, effective communication, and executive presence throughout the research and evaluation process. Based on their findings, students develop a practical proposal for actionable change or for a strategic plan designed to enhance performance, foster resilience, and drive innovation. At the end of the course, participants will present their proposals and demonstrate the ability to apply leadership theory, analytical frameworks, and practical strategies that showcase their ability to design impactful leadership solutions. This course is not available for non-degree seeking students.

Information Design and Visual Communication is an interdisciplinary course that ranges from the development of graphs and data visualizations to the design of geographical information, logos, images, and dashboard composition for diverse stakeholders. Learners develop techniques to prepare data for visualization, choose a relevant visual framework to represent data, and apply principles of visual design to enhance audience understanding and appeal of those designs.  Information Design and Visual Communication is grounded in the disciplines of psychology, statistics, cognitive science, and design composition.

Modern leaders must navigate constant disruption, making innovation not just a competitive advantage but an essential driver of long-term resilience and growth. Frameworks for Innovation examines the mindsets, structures, and organizational conditions that enable creative problem solving. Course participants learn to assess innovation readiness, influence stakeholder alignment, and lead the processes between exploration and operational execution. Emerging leaders develop the skills needed to identify problems of practice, generate novel approaches, and guide teams through iterative cycles of discovery and refinement.