College of Ed names Walker Associate Dean for Academic Affairs

David WalkerDavid Walker has been named associate dean for Academic Affairs at the NIU College of Education.

Currently a professor in the Educational Research and Evaluation program within the Department of Educational Technology, Research and Assessment (ETRA), Walker’s research interests include statistical code and algorithms, effect sizes, structural analyses, predictive analyses and the general linear model.

As such, he has experience teaching undergraduate assessment and graduate statistical and research methodology courses as well as mentoring and serving on master’s and doctoral student thesis and dissertation committees.

His administrative background includes five years of experience as the College of Education’s Coordinator of Assessment, including areas of program accreditation and licensure. Also, he has served on numerous departmental, college and university-level committees pertaining to assessment and curricular initiatives.

In his new role, Walker will champion all curricular activities, work to strengthen and align assessment practices, and oversee student recruitment and retention efforts college-wide.

“I am so pleased to have David take on the associate dean of Academic Affairs position,” Dean Laurie Elish-Piper said. “He brings a great deal of expertise with assessment, accreditation and curriculum to the position, as well as his strong commitment to collaboration, mentoring and innovation.”

Prior to NIU, Walker worked as an assistant professor of educational research at Florida Atlantic University. He has since spent 14 years as a faculty member at NIU where he has had a consistent record of productivity including 101 refereed journal publications, one textbook and 144 peer-reviewed presentations.

Moreover, he has held professional leadership posts as the chair of the College of Education’s College Council, editor of the General Linear Model Journal, board member with the Illinois Education Research Council and president of the Mid-Western Educational Research Association.

Walker’s role as an educator and scholar has earned him many recognitions, including recipient of the NIU College of Education Research Award, recipient of the Florida Educational Research Association’s Distinguished Paper Award and recipient of the American Educational Research Association’s Distinguished Paper Award via the Consortium of State and Regional Educational Research Associations.

“I am extremely honored to be selected and serve as the College of Education’s associate dean for Academic Affairs,” Walker said.

“The College of Education has been a very special place for me, and am I really excited to collaborate with the great faculty, professional staff, leaders and students on initiatives such as assessment, recruitment, retention and curricular innovations,” he added. “I hope to actively engage and learn with colleagues and continue the excellence of the college as a premier place to teach, research and provide service to our collective programs and students.”

Walker earned his bachelor’s degree from St. Olaf College; a master’s degree from Iowa State University of Science and Technology University; and a doctorate from Iowa State University of Science and Technology.

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