Valerie Truesdale

ASCD Immediate Past President

Valerie Truesdale is superintendent of Oconee County Schools in South Carolina. She served as chief instructional services officer for Lexington School District Five for nine years and was a deputy superintendent for the South Carolina Department of Education, supervising policy, teacher licensure, technology, and student performance. Truesdale has been a high school principal, assistant principal, personnel administrator, department leader, and faculty member. She also worked in management positions with a large retail firm early in her career. First and foremost, however, she is proud to have been a teacher for more than 30 years. She holds a doctorate in educational leadership from the University of South Carolina, an MBA in marketing from Georgia State University, and a bachelor's degree in secondary education (English) from Clemson University.

Truesdale was elected to the ASCD Board of Directors from the Leadership Council in 2003 and is a member of the Finance Committee and the Leadership Council Management Team. She has served in many roles in South Carolina's ASCD affiliate since 1988, including president, program chair, and newsletter editor. She served as president of a division of the S.C. Association of School Administrators and president of the Network for Women Administrators. She was chair of Leadership Oconee County and the South Carolina Instructional Leaders Roundtable and currently serves on the Economic Development Commission. Truesdale is a trustee for the South Carolina Public Charter School Board, serves on the Advisory Board for Clemson University's College of Education, and teaches graduate courses in educational leadership at Clemson.