2020-2021 Past President Wendi Williams, PhD
Celebrated scholar, author, and educator, Wendi Williams, PhD, has committed her life's work to educate teachers, institutions, policymakers, advocates, and the general public on the intersection of education and psychology. Her work threads the intersection of psychology and education with black women’s liberatory leadership practices by which to understand our everyday lived experiences. Utilizing a critical race feminist lens, Williams’ work responds to the following question:
What lessons can be gleaned from the life experiences of Black women in life, love, and relationship to inform their liberation practices, particularly in education and leadership development?
Drawing from the legacy of Black women’s global and U.S.-based resilience, Williams’ current work articulates leadership pathways for women and girls across diverse contexts and backgrounds and has informed the promotion of health and well-being among youth, their families, and the educational and mental health practitioners who work with them.
An expert and thought leader on issues of race, gender, and class her writing and work have been featured in Ebony.com and NowThis News and published in scholarly journals such as Women and Therapy, the Journal of School Counseling, and the Journal of Counseling Psychology. Williams is a skilled educator and thought-leader as she makes complex social phenomena accessible and applicable to a wide range of audiences, from lay-persons in community, corporate settings, and academic contexts. She is currently working on two books exploring women's work and leadership experiences: Black Women at Work and a co-edited book, A More Radical Elsewhere: Foundations, Understandings, and Practices for our Freedom.
Williams is the dean of the School of Education at Mills College in Oakland, California, and the president of APA's Div. 35 (Society for the Psychology of Women).