Dr. Amanda Wilson, Associate Dean for the College of Education and Associate Professor of Elementary and Early Childhood Education, has always loved school and knew she wanted to be a teacher from a very early age.
Dr. Wilson first came to ORU as an undergraduate majoring in Elementary Education in 1999. After completing her bachelor’s degree, she began to teach in a local Christian school as a first and third grade teacher. She then continued her education at Northeastern State University where she earned a master’s degree in Reading and another in Early Childhood. In 2016, she returned to ORU to earn a doctoral degree in Higher Education Adminstration.
Dr. Wilson holds four state certifications in early childhood education, elementary education, mild-moderate disabilities, and reading specialist. Dr. Wilson's most notable accomplishments include the Quest Whole Person Dean’s Fellow for the College of Education while completing her doctoral degree in Educational Leadership and the Excellence in Teaching Faculty Award for her college in 2023. She has presented nationally and internationally including the National Association for the Education of Young Children Annual Conference and for the New York Public Library. Most recently, Dr. Wilson published an article with a colleague in NAEYC's peer-reviewed journal, Teaching Young Children.
Dr. Wilson is extremely excited to be a full-time professor for the same department that prepared her for the elementary classroom. She considers it a privilege to work with teacher candidates as they pursue a career in education. Dr. Wilson’s hope is that her students will experience the same Spirit-empowered education and transformation that she had while she was a College of Education student many years earlier.