Billy is widely acknowledged for leading experiential teaching at UC for over 15 years. His courses take place on campus, in the city, community, and in digital spaces and are structured to ensure his students' growth in knowledge which is then subject to critically informed reflection. His students not only gain access to the approaches they read about, but they gain awareness from their experiences of their ability to make a difference. In this, he empowers his students as agents for beneficial social change.
Professor Ben Kennedy, a national tertiary teaching award winner says: "Billy's teaching methods are game changing - he focuses on creating and measuring behavioural change with students. Billy has been an inspiration to my teaching and many others at UC and has made a huge impact all over the planet with vulnerable groups that need it most, making a huge contribution to UC's international reputation. I can't imagine a more worthy candidate for this award."
Billy's work in devising and implementing CHCH101 has had a tangible impact for local and global communities, for his College and for UC. The course provided the foundation for UC's new Bachelor of Youth and Community Leadership. One CHCH101 student said: "Little did I know this course would not only be my favourite course of my college career, it would also change my view on the world. There are two things that stood out to me… his ability to inspire young adults to become change agents in their community and his creative personalized instructional design that allowed students to not only identify their strengths but use them to solve problems."
Billy has an extensive local and international community of practice network that supports his pedagogical approach, where research-based teaching methods are shared. He teaches into the Postgraduate Certificate in Tertiary Teaching and colleagues across UC speak of how they have benefitted from his passionate support for an interactive, respectful and reflective approach to teaching. He also embraces new technologies for example through creating virtual field trips around community engagement.
Billy is a facilitator of learning who sets ambitious challenges for his students and supports them in realising those ambitions.
