WCCD President Dr. Linda C. Young Named Yellowhammer News 2022 Women of Impact Honoree
WCCD President Dr. Linda C. Young
Wallace Community College-Dothan (WCCD) is proud to announce the selection of Dr. Linda C. Young, WCCD President, as a Yellowhammer News 2022 Women of Impact honoree. The 5th annual Women of Impact Awards is a celebration of the “strong women who impact and propel Alabama,” according to Yellowhammer News, and recognizes the personal and professional accomplishments of Alabama women leaders, advisers and mentors “whose powerful contributions have moved the needle across business, government and non-profit sectors, empowering others through the lives they devote and trails they blaze.”
“I am truly honored and very humbled to be selected as a part of the 2022 Alabama Women of Impact,” said Dr. Young. “To be recognized in this manner is certainly a highlight of my career, especially knowing that our state is home to so many incredible female leaders who have made and continue to make a difference each and every day. I cannot help but think of the amazing and influential education leaders, such as Dr. Imogene Mathison Mixson, who blazed trails, broke barriers, and inspired a generation of women. I am grateful for this honor, and I stand in awe of the accomplishments of my peers.”
Dr. Young has spent most of her professional career in the Alabama Community College System (ACCS). In 1988, she became the first female to head an Alabama technical college when she was appointed president of Sparks State Technical College in Eufaula. When Sparks and WCCD merged in 1999, Dr. Young was appointed president of the newly united institution. Under Dr. Young’s leadership, WCCD has gained national recognition for instructional programs and initiatives.
Some of Dr. Young’s major accomplishments during her professional career include developing special educational programs for adult women that were designated as exemplary models and featured in national publications and conferences as well as in a Congressional hearing. She also chaired a legislative committee of the Alabama Coalition of Women and Girls in Education and was one of five women in the state to be recognized by the American Society for Public Administration for outstanding contributions to public administration and public service by assisting other women to advance professionally. In 2017, Dr. Young was one of 19 college presidents in the nation to be presented the prestigious Shirley B. Gordon Award of Distinction by Phi Theta Kappa, an international honor society for community colleges. In 2016, she was inducted into the Dothan Area Chamber Business Hall of Fame.
Over the span of her career, Dr. Young has served in leadership roles for many civic organizations and professional associations. Currently, she serves on Leadership Alabama’s Board of Directors and will assume the role of chair in 2023. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the Dothan Area Chamber of Commerce. She is a member of the Dothan Rotary Club, the Fort Rucker-Wiregrass Chapter of the Association of the U.S. Army (AUSA), the Ozark-Dale County Economic Development Corporation, the Flowers Hospital Board, Wiregrass Forum, and the Economic Development Association of Alabama. In 2017, she was appointed by Governor Kay Ivey to serve on the Southeast Alabama Works! Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Board. In 2018, she was appointed by the Alabama Community College System Chancellor to the Council of Presidents, an advisory group to the Alabama Commission on Higher Education.
Each Women of Impact honoree will be featured individually by Yellowhammer News beginning Sept. 19. For additional information, including a full list of nominees, visit alabamawomen.org.