Betty S. Williams, MSW, NSC Parent Education Instructor/Program Coordinator

Betty is a determined advocate for racial justice and anti-bias work in order to create a more welcoming environment for children and families to thrive. She considers herself to be an accomplice with others also working towards justice, with an understanding that listening and being proximate with those most impacted by injustice and oppression is crucial to justice work. Learning when to be humble and step back to follow the lead of those most impacted, and when to effectively leverage her access to resources & power (as a white person) to speak up for change is a lifelong learning process.

Betty has a BA in Psychology from Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tennessee. She received an MSW with an emphasis in working with children and families from the University of Washington. Betty worked in the child care fieldfor many years as an infant, toddler and preschool teacher, program supervisor, and center director; during which time shehelped found and served on the board of the Child Care Directors Association of Greater Seattle. She taught Early Childhood Education and Parent Education Classes as a part-time instructor at Edmonds Community College and Seattle Central Community College. Since 2004, Betty has been working as a full-time tenured instructor in Parent Education at North Seattle College. She coordinates the program as well as teaches 4 classes, and is active in the equity, diversity and inclusion work of the campus, including co-chairing the Faculty Diversity and Inclusion Committee for the Seattle Colleges District. She has served as co-chair of the AFT (American Federation of Teachers) Seattle Human and Civil Rights Committee and on the AFT Washington Human and Civil Rights Committee. She co-chaired the Racial Justice Team at University Unitarian Church for many years. 

Betty has presented (with a multicultural team) at local and national conferences about her work with the Seattle Colleges District and a statewide group, DEHPD (Diversity and Equity in Hiring and Professional Development) regarding strategies to change hiring and retention practices with goals of racial equity and improved diversity, equity and inclusion in higher education institutions, which the research shows improves student success for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) and white students.

She received the Seattle Colleges District Lifelong Learning award, the Charles Kane Award for Innovation, AFT Washington Hugo Chavez award, the Simposio de MujeresLatinas Ally award, and the Donato Award for parenting education excellence.

Betty is committed to working towards a supportive, diverse, inclusive, and equitable community as the best way for all children to grow, learn, and fulfill their potential as caring citizens of the world.

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