William O’Neil-White
Assistant Professor
Teaching & Curriculum
PhD, University at Buffalo (curriculum, instruction, and the science of learning)
MS, Buffalo State University (education)
BS, Buffalo State University (secondary English education)
Biography
William O’Neil-White joined the teaching and curriculum faculty in 2025. He is a certified 7-12 English and African-American studies teacher in New York State and has eight years of teaching experience. O’Neil-White has spent his entire career dedicated to working with urban public school students.
O’Neil-White has substantial teaching experience. Before joining the Warner School, he served as a Buffalo Public Schools teacher at both City Honors School, a National Blue Ribbon gifted & talented school, and the New Buffalo School for Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management, a vocational school with Regents courses that offers dual certification. In this role, O’Neil-White used culturally sustaining teaching to urban students to help build critical literacy. Additionally, he pioneered the first African-American Studies program at City Honors.
O’Neil-White’s research explores Black educational fugitivity, youth critical literacy practices, and educational sanctuaries, drawing from Critical Race Theory and Critical Pedagogy. His qualitative studies, primarily ethnographic and case-based, investigate the lived experiences of Black and Brown youth in Rust Belt cities. His work includes studies on STEM and literacy practices in urban schools, ethnic heritage after-school programs, and literacy spaces for Black males, all deeply influenced by his classroom teaching.