ECU department chair honored as outstanding educator

Dr. Sharon Ballard, associate professor and chair of East Carolina University’s Department of Human Development and Family Science in the College of Health and Human Performance has been recognized nationally for her work in family life education.

Ballard

Ballard is the 2016 Margaret E. Arcus Outstanding Family Life Educator Award recipient. The award recognizes her significant contributions to the field of family life education through research, theory, publication, practice, program development and training.

“We congratulate Sharon on this prestigious award and are grateful for her leadership in this field,” said Dr. Glen Gilbert, dean of the College of Health and Human Performance.

Ballard has helped shaped family life education for decades joining the ECU faculty in 2000. She served as interim chair for the department before being named chair in 2013 and has taught courses at The University of Tennessee – Knoxville and Western Carolina University. She also taught family and consumer sciences in the public schools for six years.  Ballard has been a certified family life educator since 1998.

Ballard’s research interests include family life education programming, parent education, and sexuality education.  She has published more than 40 journal articles and book chapters, including her co-edited book Family Life Education with Diverse Populations.

In 2012, she received the Certified Family Life Education Service Award and is the past chair of the Certified Family Life Educator Advisory Committee with the National Council on Family Relations.

“As a family life educator, I am passionate about programming that strengthens and empowers families and I am thrilled to be recognized for my work,” said Sharon Ballard, associate professor and department chair. “In particular, to be the recipient for an award that bears the name of Margaret Arcus, who has long been a leader in family life education, is humbling and a great honor.”

She earned a bachelor’s degree in home economics education from the University of Maine.  She received both a master’s degree and doctorate in child and family studies from The University of Tennessee – Knoxville. Ballard is a Certified Family Life Educator, a trained provider of the Triple P Parenting Program and a licensed K-12 family and consumer sciences teacher.

Ballard will be honored for her achievements at the 2016 NCFR annual conference Nov. 2-5 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

–Kathy Muse