About

Dr. Walter Fernando Balser is a clinical assistant professor in the masters and LEAD program. Dr. Balser’s scholarship examines the changing education ecosystem from the standpoint of decentralization, involving the growing role of outside agencies and nonprofits working in schools, the relationship between public schooling and private capital, and how all of this may intersect in a rapidly evolving digital world. Dr. Balser’s current research explores how these changes may impact organizational behavior and leadership orientations. Dr. Balser has worked as a teacher, administrator, and strategic consultant in schools across the country.

Education

• Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, Boston University, 2017
• Ed.M. in Educational Leadership, Columbia University Teachers’ College, 2007
• M.Ed. in Curriculum & Instruction, The Ohio State University, 1999
• B.A. in History, University of Florida, 1997

Professional Appointments

• Clinical Assistant Professor, Educational Leadership and Policy, School of Human Development and Organizational Studies in Education, College of Education, University of Florida, 2022 – present
• Clinical Assistant Professor, Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, Morgridge College of Education, University of Denver, 2018 – 2020
• Founding Director, Open Partnership Education Network (OPEN), University of South Florida, 2016 – 2018
• Dean Fellow & Coordinator of Pre-teacher Education Partnerships, Boston University School of Education, 2013-2016
• School Administrator, Hillsborough County Schools, 2008-2013

Selected Publications

Books / Book Chapters

• Balser, W.F., Diasio, S. and Kendal, T. (2021), Societal Reorientation via Programmable Trust: A Case for Piloting New Models of Open Governance in Education, Grech, A. (Ed.) Media, Technology and Education in a Post-Truth Society (Digital Activism and Society: Politics, Economy And Culture In Network Communication), Emerald Publishing Limited, Bingley, pp.95-110. DOI https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-80043-906-120211007.
• Balser, W.F. & Coleman, H.. (Jan. 2020). Beyond the Public-Private Nexus: A Framework for Examining School Partnership Governance in a Blended Capital Reality. Journal of Transformative Leadership Studies. January 2020.
• Balser, W.F. & Mills, S.. (March. 2022). Open Partnership Education Network Whitepaper: An Open Source Vision for Community Learning. http://www.learnopen.org.

Presentations

• “Rad Schools Jam: A Fresh Take on Learning Intersecting Education, Music, and Sports.” (November, 2017) Founder and curator of proof of concept for education conversations via community wide festival
• “Sparking the Next Generation of Teachers: How a changing education market can inspire youth to enter the education profession.” (May 2017) TedX Presentation on the evolving education marketplace for educators

Other Publications

• Kendal,T. & Balser, W.F.. (Oct. 2019). What Hackers Can Teach Schools About Thriving in a Decentralized Reality. Diplomatic Courier.
• Balser, W.F. ( Sept. 2016). What LinkedIn Taught me about being ‘Just a Teacher’. Huff Post.
• Balser, W.F. (Jan. 2019). Some Advice for Nick Sandmann—and Really, Every High School Student. Medium.
• Balser, W.F. ( Oct. 2018). Teaching Leaders to be Culturally Competent: What We can All Learn from Failures. Medium.
• Balser, W.F. ( Dec. 2018). What we Lose when we Ban Students, Countries. English Foreign Language (EFL) Magazine.

Selected Links

• Examining the Lived Experiences of Social Innovation Entrepreneurs Leading Agencies in the Education Space
• An Ethnographic Study of Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs)
• Open Source Leadership Orientations (OSLO v.1 Assessment)