Heather Walter earned her Ed.D. in Special Education and Disability Studies and an Ed.S. in Leadership and Administration as an Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) Scholar in the Leadership for Excellence in Early Achievement and Development (LEEAD) program at the George Washington University. She completed her Masters at Teachers College, Columbia University in Inclusive Elementary Education and Teaching Students with Dis/Abilities and earned her B.A. at the University of Buffalo, the State University of New York in Interdisciplinary Studies with a minor in Sociology. Heather is now an Assistant Professor of Special Education and a Senior Scholar at the Center for the Advancement of Wellbeing at George Mason University. 

Heather grew up in a family committed to public service, education, and the understanding that communities do not thrive in isolation—they thrive when you establish relationships and trust long-term. While Heather’s educational journey was messy and often challenging (as many are!), she found mentors and support and persisted. As a young adult, Heather worked as a counselor at an inclusive overnight camp and as an assistant director of a day camp. Then, she spent a gap semester abroad before finishing her first year at Monroe Community College (community colleges are awesome!). Hether’s childhood, community, and educational experiences led her to become passionate about bringing accessible and inclusive experienced-based education for all students into formalized learning environments, most specifically for children and families who experience marginalization and exclusion in schools in both institutional and interpersonal ways. As Heather journeyed through school she found meaning and purpose in teaching children, coaching, training teachers, and collaborating in research to support the bridge to practice for sustained and actionable change.

Before the leadership and doctoral degree, Heather worked in early intervention and elementary general and special education settings and informal camp settings in Rochester and Buffalo, NY, New York City, Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Virginia in both urban and suburban and public and private settings. While it was in the classroom that she honed her craft for teaching and her passion for supporting children, there were significant workplace challenges related to unhealthy buildings, lack of administrative support, and decreased autonomy that made her unwell as an educator. Therefore, systemic challenges such as these made her want to understand more about how we can support adults so that all children have a chance to thrive. Therefore, Heather decided to go back to school to understand this question. While in her Ed.S and Ed.D program, she continued to work in Early Head Start and Head Start in Mental Health Coaching, pre-service and in-service supervision, and coaching, and she developed needs assessments and strategic plans for large urban and suburban early intervention and special education departments.

When Heather is not partnering with educators, administrators, and other community leaders you can find her hanging out with her family and friends, traveling, reading, listening to jazz, or going to the theater!