Dr. William A. Watson, who began his education at South Jersey Catholic schools and most recently worked at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., has returned to the Diocese of Camden to work in the Catholic Schools Office as director of curriculum and assessment.
Watson began his new position on Oct. 15.
After graduating from St. Rose of Lima School, Haddon Heights, and Paul VI High School, Haddon Township, Watson studied at Tulane University, New Orleans; the University of Portland, Ore.; and George Washington University, Washington, D.C., where he earned a doctorate in education.
For the past five years he worked as chief of learning experiences and evaluation at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C..
Previously he worked as a research assistant at George Washington University and as education director at Gulf Coast Exploreum Science Center in Mobile, Ala.
He also spent several years as a middle school religion, science and math teacher at Little Flower Catholic School in Mobile as part of the Alliance for Catholic Education in Science through teaching initiated by the University of Notre Dame. The experience, he said, reaffirmed his belief in the value of Catholic education.
“The rigorous academic standards to which we adhered were of course of great value to our students,” he said. “However, the greatest value we provided was a faith community that offered love to students who badly needed it.
“Every day, I saw the face of Christ in students who came to school with unwashed uniforms, who hadn’t eaten breakfast, or who had responsibilities with younger siblings or the family business that kept them from doing their homework,” he continued. “I learned quickly that the Catholic school curriculum extends beyond academic content. Its core is the witness to Christ that happens in every interaction and every act of kindness, love and fellowship.”
Watson and his wife, Mary Frances, have three children.
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