Improving Education

Lisa Williams (B.A. ’98, Secondary Education; M.A. ’04, Educational Leadership) was recently selected to participate in the Gerstacker Fellowship Program through Saginaw Valley State University, an initiative that, according to the SVSU website, includes 11 teachers, principals, superintendents and program administrators from across Michigan who will receive concentrated leadership training over a one-year period. The experience concludes with a capstone international trip to Japan in April.

Williams is the Principal at Lincoln Middle School in the Van Dyke Public School District in Warren, Michigan. Over the years, she has gained extensive administrative experience having served as an Education Improvement Consultant at Wayne RESA and Principal at Ferndale High School. Williams began her career as an English teacher at Martin Luther King High School in Detroit and Oak Park High School in the Oak Park School District.

Aside from earning both of her degrees from WMU, Williams was the recipient of the 2013 Western Michigan University Golden Apple Award. Her involvement in education reaches beyond the school walls as she has served as a High School Principal Coach in Wayne County and numerous education committees across Oakland County. Her nominator noted her willingness to stand up for what is best for kids, even if it is hard; to dream bigger in a way that believes all kids, regardless of zip code, have the right to learn in a remarkable school.

Read more about the Gerstacker Fellowship here.