Sheila Delony, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor
B.S., Lubbock Christian University, 2001
M.Ed., Texas Tech University, 2006
Ph.D., Texas Tech University, 2008

Phone: 325-674-2474
Email: sheila.delony@acu.edu

Dr. Delony was named a winner of the 2011 Outstanding Faculty Award for ACU's College of Education and Human Services. This award is presented annually to a faculty member who demonstrates excellence in teaching, intellectual creativity and collegiality. Achievements that merit the award may include innovation in the classroom, outstanding mentoring of students and other faculty, contributing significantly to the profession, and the integration of faith and missional principles into the curriculum.

Since the start of her ACU teaching career in 2008, Dr. Delony has established an important research agenda, eagerly including undergraduates in research. Her students present at national conferences, and in 2010 one of her students took first place in ACU's annual Undergraduate Research Festival. 

Dr. Delony has been instrumental in the professional development of teachers in the K-12 community, including faculty at Ortiz, Reagan, and Lee Elementary Schools, at the Woodson Center for Excellence, at schools in the Lubbock Independent School District, and at Abilene Christian Schools. She is well known among her ACU colleagues for taking the information she learns in these situations and integrating that into classroom curriculum and her own research. She has published articles in the Journal of College and Character, and the New Mexico Journal of Reading.

Dr. Delony reimagined two important courses in the realignment of the Teacher Education curriculum. 

Her nominator said this:

“Dr. Delony’s greatest strength lies in her ability to mentor teachers - all teachers. In her short time in Abilene, Dr. Delony has mentored pre-service teachers, classroom teachers and university faculty. Her mentoring of pre-service teachers happens on a daily basis in her university classroom. 

"Beyond her classroom teaching, she makes herself available to students both in the afternoons and evenings in our department's Curriculum Lab.  It is not uncommon to walk into our lab and see a group of students hovered over a table, working on projects with Dr. Delony alongside them. 

"She holds students to the highest standards. She pushes students beyond where they thought they could go; however, she does this in a supportive manner. Her mentoring makes their achievement possible.

"Because of her mentoring of classroom teachers in Abilene, our department is now regarded as a prime example of successful partnerships between school districts and universities. 

"Dr. Delony works diligently to change public education, one teacher at a time. Knowing that the single greatest influence on a child’s education is the classroom teacher, she mentors teachers to become thoughtful, intentional, reflective practitioners."

Her nominator continues:

“Dr. Delony’s mentoring also impacts the faculty in the department of Teacher Education.  I can honestly say we are all better teachers because of her presence in our department. Personally, she has helped me begin the journey from university instructor to university scholar. Sheila’s mentoring is not something I simply observe from afar, it is something I experience on a daily basis. In Sheila, I have not only an outstanding colleague, but also a mentor."