Paul Young, PhD, a retired elementary principal, is currently the Executive Director of the West After School Center in Lancaster, Ohio. He began his career as a high school band director and then retrained to become a fourth grade teacher before advancing to an elementary principalship in 1986.
He served as President of the Ohio Association of Elementary School Administrators (OAESA) in 1997 and was elected to the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) Board of Directors in 1998 (the only person elected by write-in ballot). He became president-elect in 2001-2002 and served as the national president during the 2002-2003 school year. He retired in December 2004. Since retirement, he has served as an advocate for the advancement of equitable and affordable afterschool programming for all children.
Dr. Young completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in music education in 1972 and a Master of Music degree in trombone performance in 1973, both from Ohio University-Athens. He earned a PhD in educational administration from OU in 1992. Young has taught undergraduate music classes at Ohio University-Lancaster for more than 25 years. He continues to teach private trombone lessons. He is a strong advocate for the arts. He is the past president of the Ohio University School of Music Society of Alumni and Friends.
Dr. Young is the author of Mastering the Art of Mentoring Principals, You Have to Go to School, You're the Principal: 101 Tips to Make it Better for Your Students, Your Staff, and Yourself and Mentoring Principals: Frameworks, Agendas, Tips, and Case Studies for Mentors and Mentees. He has also written numerous articles about music, the arts, student management, and the principalship for professional journals.
