Student Spotlight:
INIKA WILLIAMS Program Educational Leadership & Policy Ed.D. Career Counseling M.S./Ed.S. ’14 Hometown Brooklyn, New York
Inika Williams currently serves as the director of pre-collegiate programs and assistant director for the Center for Academic Retention & Enhancement (CARE) at Florida State University. Prior to her current role, she advocated for K-12 student success through positions as a school counselor, ESE district team leader, classroom teacher and a youth counselor for international programs in Germany and Japan. Williams graduated from Florida A&M University with a B.S. in education and earned an M.S. and Ed.S. in career counseling from Florida State University, where she worked as a career advisor and instructor. As a student in the educational leadership and policy doctoral program at Florida State, she researches social justice and democracy in education for marginalized students. Her goal is to improve educational opportunities for marginalized student populations to support entry and completion of higher education. What made you first decide to go into education? My calling for public service as an educator started when I was given an opportunity to intern with the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army Child Youth Services as an undergraduate student. I essentially was a camp counselor to military children living overseas; I spent 24 weeks over two years in Japan, Germany and Hawaii. I found Fridays to be bittersweet, because like my co-workers, I was excited to be traveling cross-country as a tourist, but at the same
time, I was looking forward to working with the children again come Monday morning. After this experience, I solidified my decision to continue with my pursuit in the field of education. To this day, my life continues to reflect the quote, “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work another day in your life.” From K-12, to international, to postsecondary, you’ve had an incredible journey in the field of education so far. How have your previous positions prepared you for/led you to what you’re doing now? I’ve touched a little of everything in education—from teaching to career and college advising to working with students with disabilities and now higher education administration. While I’ve engaged with some of the most caring and skilled teachers, I have observed how systemic and structural barriers have and can impede on the success of students. I’m now in a position that empowers me to make decisions and leverage financial resources in school communities to combat socioeconomic issues. The students enrolled in our pre-college programs have a 100% graduation rate, and this past year, 100% of our graduating seniors will enroll in a college, university or trade school this fall. Describe a memorable moment you’ve had in your career. Despite the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, I’ve had an incredible year. I had my first research study published and
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