Candace Young

Candace C. Young is an American academic and expert in higher education policy.

Academic Career
Young received her BA in history and government from Columbia College and her MA and PhD in political science from the University of Missouri - Columbia. Her dissertation, U.S. Olympic Politics: A Public Policy Case Study, was inspired by her husband Larry Young's participation in the 1968 and 1972 Olympic Games, in both of which he won a bronze medal in athletics events. Young is a professor of political science at Truman State University in Kirksville, MO. In her career as an academic, Young has received several awards including Truman's Educator of the Year, the Governor's Award for Excellence in Teaching, the Walker and Doris Allen Fellowship, and the Faculty Leadership Hall of Fame. She is a past-president of the Truman State Faculty Senate, the Missouri Association of Faculty Senates, and the Missouri Political Science Association.

Higher Education Policy Work
Young is best known for her work in the area of higher education academic assessment. When the Missouri legislature changed Truman State University's mission, Young emerged as a leader on the issue of academic assessment, frequently testifying before legislators on the issue. With Young's assistance, Truman State University (at the time known as Northeast Missouri State University) won the G. Theodore Mitau Award for Innovation and Excellence in 1984. Indeed, Truman is a nationally-recognized leader in higher education assessment, and this is due in large part to Young's leadership on the issue. Indeed, her contributions to the field have been noted in leading treatises on assessment.

Following her success with Truman's program, Young has served in an advisory capacity for multiple governments and higher education institutions and organizations. For example, in 2001 she served in an advisory capacity to the SUNY system, commenting on New York's attempt to improve its assessment regime. She also serves as a member of the Missouri Department of Higher Education's Commission on Curriculum and Assessment, and the American Political Science Association has named her the Chairwoman of its Study Group on Assessment. In addition, she has served as the 2012 and 2013 Chair of the APSA Teaching and Learning Conference Program Committee.