Biography

Toni M. Williams is an Associate Professor in the Teacher Education department at the University of South Carolina. Creating meaningful, authentic learning for students of all backgrounds is Williams' priority in teaching. She currently works with middle school pre-service teachers. Research interests include life histories of middle school pre-service teacher and literate lives of students of color. Moreover she is interested in issues of social justice and diversity in education through literacy with a critical race lens.

Education

University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro, NC
Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction, Teacher Education, May 2011

University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro, NC
Master of Education, Curriculum and Instruction/Middle Grades Education, May 2004

Peace College, Raleigh, NC
B.A. Communication, English minor, May 1998

Expertise

Culturally responsive equity and diversity teaching and social justice in education, middle level teacher education, literacy education

Research Interests

Culturally Sustainable Pedagogy

Equity & Diversity Teaching and Social Justice in Education

Middle level Teacher Education

Literacy education.

Selected Publications

Bryan, N. & Williams, T.M. (2017). We need more than just Black male bodies in classrooms: Recruiting and Retaining Culturally Relevant Black Male Teachers in Early Childhood Education. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education.

Williams, T.M. & Bryan, N., (2016). Respecting A Cultural Continuum of Black Male Pedagogy: Exploring the Life History of a Black Male Middle School Teacher. Urban Review.

Miller-Dyce, C. and Williams, T. Editors. (2015). DIVA Diaries: Stories of black women who have endured. New York, NY: Peter Lang.

Williams, T.M., Virtue, D.C., Smith, D.C., (2016). Working Hand-in-Hand to Strengthen Preservice Teacher Education: The Development of a Middle Level PDS Partnership in South Carolina in The Handbook of Resources in Middle Level. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

Bryan, N., Johnson, L., and Williams, T. M. (2016). Preparing Black Male Teachers for the Gifted Classroom: Recommendations for Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Journal of Negro Education.

Laughter, J., Han, K. T., King, D., Madhuri, M., Nayan, R., and Williams, T. M. (2014). A community of narratives: Describing transracialized selves through a community of practice. Education in Urban Society.

Special Awards

University of South Carolina Early Career Educator Award, Spring 2017