Educating the Whole Child: ACE and PBL

Dr. Clarence Williams an experienced educational leader with a demonstrated history of teaching and leading academic excellence in urban education. Dr. Williams currently serves Crowley ISD as the School Transformation Officer. He has been with Crowley ISD for eight years and he has served in various leadership roles prior to his current position.

I am the Coordinator of Innovation within Crowley ISD. I worked alongside our curriculum writing team to integrate PBL within our African American Studies curriculum to bring the ancestry experience to our students. I've been in education 11 years and have worked in the middle school science classroom to implement learner-led instruction and outside school programs. Recently, I've worked as a Science Instructional Support Specialist for K-5 helping teachers and students support strong content knowledge through professional development, PLCs, and instructional coaching.

I began my love for teaching in 1988, for the Oklahoma City Public School District where I taught Math and Algebra I. I continued my math journey and education experience joining Dodge City Public Schools as a math instructional coach and Garland ISD, where I continued to teach in the area of math. All three school districts allowed me to develop strategic systems and create designs in hopes of improving student performance, which led to the position as an Assistant Principal for Garland ISD for six years. In the last eight years, I have served as Principal for several school districts, including Decatur Public Schools in Illinois, where I met AYP requirements for the state in Reading and Math; and Lancaster ISD Texas, where our school received 17 distinctions in ELAR/Reading, Math and Science; Post-Secondary Readiness; and was top 25% in Student Growth-Closing the Performance Gap. Currently, I am the Principal for Crowley ISD at the ACE Demonstration and Design Lab at J.A. Hargrave Elementary School. As a building principal, I encourage staff to use a holistic approach by learning the whole student to determine how improvements can deter behaviors and produce better learners. My mind-set for teaching is: Excellence Is Standard. This reflects how teachers, staff, and students who believe in each other can indeed change the culture of the school and open the pathway to success!