Retired UA Co-op Director Honored with National Award

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Dr. William “Bill” Taylor, who led cooperative education efforts at The University of Alabama for nearly 20 years, is receiving national recognition for his career in cooperative education by the American Society of Engineering Education, or ASEE.

Taylor will be honored with 2015 Clement J. Freund Award at the ASEE summer conference. Established in 1979 by the Cooperative and Experiential Education Division of ASEE, the award is given biennially for outstanding contributions to the aims and ideals of cooperative education.

“The honor is richly deserved for the many years of service Bill has given to the field of cooperative education,” said Naomi Powell, current director of the UA Cooperative Education and Professional Practice Program.

Co-op allows students to alternate periods of full-time study with periods of full-time employment. This program offers work related to the academic major or career interests of each student. The experience enhances the students’ employment prospects after graduation.

In addition, UA Co-op also added a Professional Practice program that allows engineering students to work full-time for an entire semester while still receiving full-time student status.

Taylor joined the UA program in 1980 as assistant director and was named director in 1982. He retired in 2001.

For more than 20 years he pioneered new program models, harnessed new technologies and created new communication conduits to reach students, faculty and employers.

“Professionals like Bill don’t come along every day,” said Roy Gregg, who replaced Taylor as Co-op director and retired in 2014. “He is a dedicated educator and supporter of student career exploration and student development.”

Besides his work at UA, Taylor advanced cooperative education nationally. He lobbied along with the federal Department of Education and national organizations to advance the concept of cooperative education as well as to promote funding and training for institutions, employers and personnel.

He was also the project administrator of the Southeastern Training Center for Cooperative Education.

Taylor also received a demonstration grant to assist historically and predominantly black colleges and universities, and he received a contract from the National Security Agency to enhance the computer operations of minority institutions in the southwestern and southeastern United States through cooperative education.

He held leadership positions in ASEE/CEED and the Alabama Coop Organization. He was honored by CEED with the Alvah K. Borman recipient in 1998, and in 1987 he was the recipient of the National University Continuing Education Association’s Award for Humanities Programming.

After retiring from the University, Taylor became a consultant to the Mercedes-Benz U.S. International Cooperative Education Program.