RIVER FOREST, Ill. — Julie Willoughby, of Sidney, earned her Ph.D. in School Leadership on May 7, 2016, from Concordia of Chicago in River Forest, Illinois.
Willoughby’s dissertation title is “How Primary Teachers Understand the Team Protocol in Ohio.” The dissertation focused on how teachers understand the five-step process in Teacher-Based Teams. Her dissertation committee included Dr. Elena Lyutykh, chair; Dr. Julie Davis, executive director of Ohio Association of Elementary School Administrators (OAESA); and Dr. Brian McNulty, noted author and educational professional development presenter. Willoughby earned her superintendent license during her coursework at Concordia of Chicago.
Willoughby started her work for this degree seven years ago as elementary principal at New Knoxville Local Schools. Initial coursework was provided through SAIL (Standard-Aligned Instructional Leadership) through OAESA. SAIL classes were both online and in Columbus at OAESA headquarters. Willoughby earned two Alpha Delta State Delta Kappa Gamma scholarships totaling $7,000 to assist with her studies. The scholarships were provided through Delta Kappa Gamma Society International, an organization that promotes professional and personal growth of women educators and excellence in education.
Julie’s husband, John Willoughby, graduated from Concordia of Chicago with his Master of Arts in School Leadership in 2010. That same spring the John Willoughby’s first daughter, Jaclyn Willoughby, graduated from high school. John was not able to attend his graduation at Concordia that spring; however, John participated in graduation ceremonies with his wife, Julie, this May. The two were just rows from each other during the ceremony itself and were very happy to share these accomplishments together with their family.
Willoughby received her Bachelor of Science from the Ohio State University and Master of Education in Administration and Supervision from Bowling Green State University. She is employed as principal for Urbana City Schools were she has served as principal for both East Elementary and North Elementary Schools.
She resides in Sidney with her husband, John Willoughby, the recently hired head varsity basketball coach and assistan principal at Sidney High School. Together, they have four children, Bobby and Dylan Vanderpool, and Jaclyn and Taylor Willoughby.
A graduate of Wapakoneta High School, she is the daughter of Joe and Dottie Morgan, of Wapakoneta.
