William W. Reynolds Jr., GRD’71

December 1, 2013

When Bill Reynolds came to GSE in 1965 to pursue an Ed.D. in school administration, he expected to spend two years taking classes and then return to high school teaching while he completed his dissertation. As it turned out, Bill’s talents and enthusiasm led him to opportunities he hadn’t even thought of.

Man in suit
WilliamW. Reynolds Jr., GRD '71
“The courses under Drs. Castetter, Pillard, and Attorney Lee Garber were invigorating, and the opportunity as part of a fellowship to work as an assistant with Drs. Oliver and Hammock in the student teaching and graduate teacher intern programs was richly rewarding.”

At the end of his two years, Bill was recruited by Dean Morris Viteles to stay on as a lecturer in the Teacher Education Program and to work with Dr. Edward B. Shils of the Wharton School on a management study of Philadelphia public schools. Bill excelled in both roles, and when Dean Viteles retired, incoming Dean Neal Gross appointed Bill Director of GSE’s Teacher Education Program and Assistant Dean.

Bill enjoyed and succeeded in his work at GSE, staying on for seven years. “Penn had developed my leadership skills and opened career possibilities far beyond anything I had imagined. It freed me from conventional career track thinking.”

“Penn had developed my leadership skills and opened career possibilities far beyond anything I had imagined.”

Since leaving Penn GSE, Bill has been a school principal, a mayor, founder and president of a management consulting firm, director of a university innovation center, and a dean.

“I have had a rich, varied and fulfilling career. I owe this attitude and the successes I have enjoyed largely to Penn GSE. That is why I have become a member of the William B. Castetter Circle.” 

Bill’s legacy will help future generations of students benefit from a GSE education.

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