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Auburn Randolph, Auburn Randolph Photography
Working to Be a Part of
the Solution Jacinta Williams PB’07 has spent her career helping to make sure everyone has a voice. By Sara Baxter
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hen Jacinta Williams PB’07 was in college, her plan was to become a lawyer. But, as they sometimes do, plans changed. She fell in love with teaching. Williams graduated in 2003 from Emory University with a degree in sociology. While she intended to head straight to law school, she instead decided to take a year off. She looked for something productive to do with her time and a way to give back to the community. She found Teach For America, which combined her interest in working with children — she had volunteered in an elementary school while at Emory — and serving the community. She was accepted and placed in a public elementary school in downtown Atlanta. Since Teach For America required a two-year commitment, she figured law school could wait for two years. But when she walked into the classroom, she knew she had found her calling. “The minute I saw those 12 faces looking at me, I knew it was where I belonged,” she says. “It was effortless and enjoyable. I fell in love with teaching and the community.” This is where her career path took a turn. The two years of teaching turned into seven. A law degree was replaced with the completion of Agnes Scott College’s post-baccalaureate early childhood preparation program and a master’s degree in early childhood education from Oglethorpe University. And observations and experiences in the classroom fostered an interest in racial equity and inclusion. After seven years of teaching, Williams then spent two more as an instructional coach. Along the way, she was becoming aware of certain issues that were a deterrent for BIPOC students in a learning environment. “In the classroom, I started noticing that systemic change was needed,” Williams says. “I saw the disparity in educational equity in terms of what resources were available to students based on where they lived. It manifested itself in an opportunity gap for students.
