With 20 years of professional experience in academia to her credit, Sherry P. Young is well-regarded in the field of special education. Since 2022, she has thrived as an autism in-class support (ICS) coach in the Alief Independent School District in Houston, Texas. In this capacity, Ms. Young specializes in teaching young students with learning, visual and hearing disabilities, autism spectrum disorder, and aggressive or problematic behaviors.
Joining the Alief Independent School District in 2005, Ms. Young served as a mathematics interventionist for students in special education, where she offered support in classroom settings. Likewise, she was a general education teacher at the pre-kindergarten level before turning her attention to ICS services. Before pivoting her career toward the education sector, Ms. Young worked in corporate America for over 10 years.
To prepare for her career, Ms. Young pursued a formal education at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in education in 1994. Thereafter, she matriculated at the University of Phoenix, earning a Master of Science in education and curriculum in 2008. Adjacent to her academic credentials, Ms. Young holds many certifications, including generalist EC-4, physical education EC-12, special education EC-12 and English as a second language generalist EC-4. She also received an alternative certification for special education.
Outside of her primary career appointments, Ms. Young has been a coach for the Alief Special Olympics and a volunteer with the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo since 2005. Previously, she was the head of delegation for the Alief Special Olympics between 2017 and 2022. Likewise, she has maintained professional alignment with Autism Speaks and the Association of Texas Professional Educators to remain abreast of developments within her areas of expertise.
Among the many highlights of her career, Ms. Young is particularly proud of helping countless students with disabilities, leveraging her experience, compassion and innate ability to listen to successfully serve as a student mentor and advocate. To wit, she is also gratified by her role in implementing an intervention program for students who exhibited aggressive behavior toward their peers and school staff members.
As a testament to her success, Ms. Young was named Teacher of the Year at Petrosky Elementary School for the 2014-2015 academic year. Looking toward the future, she aims to ease out of an educational role to pursue an administrative position in the Alief Independent School District.
Contact Ms. Young: