Goshen College has added a Master of Arts in teaching program as of the fall 2025 semester.

19 students are currently enrolled in the first class of the program, many of them already teachers who are working full time during the day and earning their degree online in the evening.

The master’s degree, which is the sixth graduate program at GC, is designed for people who already have a bachelor’s degree and are pursuing their first teaching license in elementary or secondary education.

“Although this program began this fall semester, I feel like I am in my second year. And some students, they still don’t still get enough credits to take master’s degree at some point,” said Suzanne Ehst, associate academic dean and co-director of the master’s program in education.

Ehst said that the master’s program will help to address a shortfall of K-12 teachers statewide, which has led to new teachers being hired on an emergency license while they pursue formal teaching credentials.

When asked whether she was satisfied with the group of professors in the Master’s program, she said, “I am satisfied, it is much like in the Undergraduate program and many of the professors come from numerous countries. Consequently, it is more like diversity.”

When asked whether GC would employ graduates of its master’s of education program to enhance the quality of education at the college, she said, “The intent of the program is to prepare people to teach in K-12 schools, not higher education.”

“There is a shortage of teachers in Indiana, but there are many people who already have bachelors’ degrees who want to become teachers,” Ehst said. “This program allows those people to earn their teaching credentials while also working toward a master’s degree.”

This is a fully online program and according to Ehst, it “allows us to enroll people from around the country, not just a local population. The program is designed for people who are working full-time jobs and have other responsibilities, so coming to campus might be prohibitive.”

Angela DiGeroloma, one of the students from the Master of Arts in Teaching program, said that she became a teacher after working in business.

“I never originally saw myself as a teacher, but during COVID I needed a job that matched my child’s school schedule, so I left my accounting position and began working as an aide,” DiGeroloma said. “After several years in the schools, I knew I was in the right place — working with kids felt natural and meaningful.” 

She also mentioned that “experience motivated me to finish my bachelor’s degree in business and then continue at Goshen College in the Transition to Teaching program while pursuing my master’s in ENL.”

“The program’s evening online classes allow me to balance my graduate studies with my daytime work as a teacher, where I’m gaining the experience I need in real classrooms,” she said. “Teaching has become more than just a career path — it’s a calling — and I truly can’t imagine myself doing anything else.”

When asked about how large the master’s of education program at GC aims to become in the future, Ehst, said, “we are targeting an intake of 18 new students per year, and we have achieved this target for the first two years since the program’s establishment.”