Is an Administrative Role in Your Future?

Scott Steinbrook received his bachelor's degree in Business Education from the University of Nebraska at Kearney in 1998, and went to work at Kearney High School as a substitute teacher and coach the following school year. Shortly after, a full-time teaching positioned opened up and Steinbrook is currently the Business and Physical Education teacher.

In 2007 he received his master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from UNK and at the time didn't really think he’d want or need an additional degree beyond that. However, after another ten years in the classroom, he began to think that eventually he may want to make a career move to an administrative role. 

“Pursuing an online Educational Administrative degree at UNK was an easy decision for me,” said Steinbrook.

In the spring of 2018, he completed the academic requirements at UNK to earn an administrative certificate so that in the future, he will be qualified to explore administration if he decides to go that route. 

What made you decide to earn your master’s degree in Educational Administration?
Having spent the first 15+ years of my career in the classroom and on the sidelines coaching, I've loved all of those experiences. As I've gotten older and more experienced, there's part of me that feels like moving into more of a leadership position in the building or in the district. I feel I could be of value to those teachers and coaches who are just getting started in this profession. I've been fortunate to have been mentored by some great teachers, coaches, and administrators. I think we all get to a point in our careers where we mature, reflect, and realize that it's our professional responsibility to mentor the next generation of educators. For me, at this very moment, I'm trying to do that in my current position as a classroom teacher and coach, but there may come a point in time where taking the next step into administration will help me further that professional goal. 

What made you choose UNK?
I was initially drawn to UNK out of high school and community college, where I spent my first two years of college, because of the similarity in size of the community I grew up in (Columbus), and the slightly smaller campus feel as compared to Division I universities in the Midwest. There was also the ease of communicating with UNK faculty either in person or online. As the online program developed during my post-grad studies, it became even more convenient to continue my education at UNK.

What do you feel are the advantages in enrolling in an online program?
The online program allowed me to continue my education while still teaching and coaching full time at KHS. During a portion of this time I was the head coach for two sports at KHS, and there simply wasn't enough hours in the day to even consider taking classes in a physical setting. Online courses were the only realistic option that I felt I had, where I could work on assignments late at night, weekends, or road trips home from away games. 

Can you describe the relationships you built with faculty/students in the EDAD program and how you benefited from them?
Through the virtual classrooms on Blackboard, Canvas, Skype sessions, and Zoom lessons, there was still interaction with faculty and staff where you could build relationships and feel like you still got to know the people even though you weren't physically sitting in a classroom together. Communicating with professors online was easy and efficient, as was communicating with other members of the classes I've taken. I always enjoyed being in online classes with other teachers and coaches that I've networked with previously. The virtual classrooms allowed us to discuss topics that were relevant to our current educational experiences, as well as the courses we were currently enrolled in. 

Having the opportunity to learn from experienced professors at UNK, many of which are current or former administrators definitely prepared me to eventually take on an administrative role. Learning from teachers and other students from a variety of backgrounds, and learning from their own experiences definitely added to the value of the classes. 

Learn more about the fully online Educational Administration degree options.