William Durden
Encyclopedia
William G. Durden is the President of Dickinson College
. He was a Fulbright scholar and a recipient of the Klingenstein Fellowship from Teacher's College, Columbia University
.
Durden completed high school at The Albany Academy
in Albany
, New York
. He was one of the first generation in his family to attend college, receiving a B.A. degree from Dickinson (class of 1971) and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in German Languages and Literature from Johns Hopkins University
. While a student at Dickinson, he was a member of the Theta Chi
fraternity.
Durden was the executive director of the Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth for 16 years and a member of the university's German Department. For 11 of his years at Hopkins, he was a senior education consultant for the U.S. Department of State and chair of its Advisory Committee on Exceptional Children and Youth. Dr. Durden has also served as President of the Sylvan Academy of Sylvan Learning Systems, Inc.
and as Vice-President for Academic Affairs of the Caliber Learning Network, a joint distance-learning venture of Sylvan and MCI
. He assumed the presidency at Dickinson on July 1, 1999.
Durden was a mentor for the American Council on Education
Fellows Program, the premier higher education leadership development program in the USA. He was the mentor for 2004-2005 ACE Fellow Michael B. Brown (now Associate Dean of the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences
at East Carolina University
). In 2007-08, Durden served as chairman of the Annapolis Group
subcommittee working on proposing an alternative to the U.S. News and World Report rankings of colleges.
Recently, he was appointed chair of the Advisory Board of the Center for the International Exchange of Scholars, Fulbright Scholar Program.
Dickinson College
Dickinson College is a private, residential liberal arts college in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Originally established as a Grammar School in 1773, Dickinson was chartered September 9, 1783, five days after the signing of the Treaty of Paris, making it the first college to be founded in the newly...
. He was a Fulbright scholar and a recipient of the Klingenstein Fellowship from Teacher's College, Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
.
Durden completed high school at The Albany Academy
The Albany Academy
The Albany Academy is an independent college preparatory day school for boys in Albany, New York, USA, enrolling students from Preschool to Grade 12. It was established in 1813 by a charter signed by Mayor Philip Schuyler Van Rensselaer and the city council of Albany...
in Albany
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He was one of the first generation in his family to attend college, receiving a B.A. degree from Dickinson (class of 1971) and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in German Languages and Literature from Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
. While a student at Dickinson, he was a member of the Theta Chi
Theta Chi
Theta Chi Fraternity is an international college fraternity. It was founded on April 10, 1856 as the Theta Chi Society, at Norwich University, Norwich, Vermont, U.S., and was the 21st of the 71 North-American Interfraternity Conference men's fraternities.-Founding and early years at Norwich:Theta...
fraternity.
Durden was the executive director of the Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth for 16 years and a member of the university's German Department. For 11 of his years at Hopkins, he was a senior education consultant for the U.S. Department of State and chair of its Advisory Committee on Exceptional Children and Youth. Dr. Durden has also served as President of the Sylvan Academy of Sylvan Learning Systems, Inc.
Sylvan Learning
Sylvan Learning consists of franchised and corporate supplemental learning centers which provide personalized instruction in reading, writing, mathematics, study skills, homework support, and test preparation for college entrance and state exams...
and as Vice-President for Academic Affairs of the Caliber Learning Network, a joint distance-learning venture of Sylvan and MCI
MCI Inc.
MCI, Inc. is an American telecommunications subsidiary of Verizon Communications that is headquartered in Ashburn, Virginia...
. He assumed the presidency at Dickinson on July 1, 1999.
Durden was a mentor for the American Council on Education
American Council on Education
The American Council on Education is a United States organization, established in 1918, comprising over 1,800 accredited, degree-granting colleges and universities and higher education-related associations, organizations, and corporations....
Fellows Program, the premier higher education leadership development program in the USA. He was the mentor for 2004-2005 ACE Fellow Michael B. Brown (now Associate Dean of the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences
Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences
Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences is the liberal arts college at East Carolina University. It is composed principally of departments in mathematics, natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities....
at East Carolina University
East Carolina University
East Carolina University is a public, coeducational, engaged doctoral/research university located in Greenville, North Carolina, United States. Named East Carolina University by statute and commonly known as ECU or East Carolina, the university is the largest institution of higher learning in...
). In 2007-08, Durden served as chairman of the Annapolis Group
Annapolis Group
The Annapolis Group is an American organization that describes itself as "a nonprofit alliance of the nation’s leading independent liberal arts colleges." It represents approximately 130 liberal arts colleges in the United States...
subcommittee working on proposing an alternative to the U.S. News and World Report rankings of colleges.
Recently, he was appointed chair of the Advisory Board of the Center for the International Exchange of Scholars, Fulbright Scholar Program.
External links
- Dickinson College biography of William Durden
- YouTube Video: "How to Tie a Bowtie" (featuring William Durden)