Two educational specialist programs that UALR had the authority to offer, but not the resources to develop, were eliminated. UALR responded to a call from the central Arkansas community to develop EdD programs in higher education and in educational administration and supervision. Doctoral programs at UALR now account for approximately five percent of the students who graduate from the Graduate School. Chapter 16 describes the development of these three programs. Several of the degrees have multiple tracks or options for more specialized study.
Many departments offer graduate classes in support of programs housed in other departments.
One example, liberal studies, requires that most of the classes be offered by departments that do not have a master s program. Programs in education, business, public administration, health services administration, art, audiology and speech pathology, and journalism are professionally accredited. Other graduate programs, such as chemistry and computer science, are in departments that have professionally accredited undergraduate programs. UALR has a long tradition of rigorous graduate program reviews. One review in the early part of this decade culminated in a recommendation by the Graduate Council to cease accepting students into the program and to phase it out in its present form.