Dr. William Young, a 2011 Walden Ed.D. graduate of the Teacher Leadership program, obtained both a Bachelor’s and Master’s in Education with an emphasis on visual art education, K-12. He taught art for a large urban Ohio school district for the past 13 years. Although his job title might have been “classroom teacher,” his actions and accomplishments reached far beyond the classroom.

Throughout his 13-year teaching career, Dr. Young impacted the lives of students and fellow educators alike by taking on some of the following leadership roles:

• Volunteered to lead in-service professional development workshops
• Designed and presented over 30 workshops during his teaching career
• Completed mentor training and mentored six entry-level teachers
• Supervised extra-curricular academic and athletic activities
• Supervised middle school athletics
• Coached volleyball and basketball
• Advised the National Junior Honors Society and student council
• Managed the Destination Imagination Team
• Taught undergraduate courses as an adjunct at a local university

This past summer, he designed and presented a two-day professional development workshop for English language arts and visual art teachers for the Trumbull County Educational Service Center’s Summer of Growth program. The director of the center observed portions of his workshop, noticed his leadership skills, and suggested that he apply for a supervisory position. In his new role as a Supervisor of Curriculum and Instruction, he directs fine arts and physical education programs and designs and presents professional development workshops for the county.
Dr. Young encourages fellow Walden students and alums to highlight the valuable skills obtained through their programs, such as time management, virtual collaboration, online learning technology, research and writing skills. His only regret is not having utilized Walden Career Services earlier in his program!
Walden Career Services highly encourages students to start “walking the talk” of their future roles at the beginning of their program. That way, when they reach the end of their program, they have already “filled in” those qualification gaps and are ready to make a smoother transition into their target role.
Written by Career Services Advisor, Nicolle Skalski