The Doctor of Arts degree was established as a terminal degree in response to pressure to emphasize college and university teaching as an integral part of the attainment of an advanced degree. It was intended to develop the skills of people interested in teaching at the undergraduate level.

The first D. A. program was established at Carnegie-Mellon University in the Fall of 1967. The Committee on Graduate Studies of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities and the Council of Graduate Schools in the United States both sanctioned the D.A. in 1970. The Carnegie Foundation subsequently funded it, providing seed money to 10 Universities, including Idaho State, to institutionalize the degree.