Announcing Our New Executive Director

Dear Friends,

On behalf of the School Reform Initiative Board of Directors, I am delighted to announce that Dr. Deirdre Sharkey-Williams has accepted our invitation to serve as SRI’s next Executive Director. Through Deirdre’s long-time involvement in school and district leadership, she has demonstrated her deep commitment to educational equity and excellence as well as proven her success in guiding a mission-driven organization. She will assume leadership of SRI effective January 2.

Deirdre’s remarkable skill set includes managing, maximizing and increasing an organization’s budget, successfully leading a turnaround school initiative to transform a historically low performing campus, forming partnerships with organizations that focus on responding to the local needs of schools and districts, and conducting research to understand how to develop cultural intelligence in educational leaders. You can read Deirdre’s bio here.

In her first few months, Deirdre will reach out to affiliates to learn more about SRI work across the country, collaborate with the Board to develop a strategic plan, determine potential funding sources to increase revenue, and support SRI’s Equity First Retreats this spring. In addition, our outgoing Executive Director, Kari Thierer, members of the Board, and I will work with Deirdre to help ensure a successful leadership transition.

We eagerly anticipate her leadership in continuing to deepen and drive SRI’s mission, which is to support schools to become better places for every learner by inspiring educators to improve teaching and learning so that every student receives what they need to develop to their full academic and social potential.

Please join us in welcoming Deirdre to her new role with the School Reform Initiative, and consider this an early invitation to celebrate the next chapter of SRI’s organizational journey when we gather for Fall Meeting in Boston next November!

With deep appreciation for all you to do support students,

Pat Norman
On behalf of SRI’s Board of Directors

Deirdre’s Bio

Dr. Deirdre Williams brings an unconventional perspective to the role of Executive Director. Her career began in public health, where she led Centers for Disease Control research studies of HIV/AIDS and its impact on marginalized communities in Houston, TX.  She learned from her research that a quality education or the lack thereof was the contributing factor to diseases plaguing poor communities.  This research created her sense of urgency and passion for public education.  Through alternative certification, Dr. Williams became a biology teacher. With a skillset for analyzing data to assess root causes for improving outcomes, she was quickly tapped to serve in leadership roles where she has been committed to advancing the knowledge of practices that improve learning outcomes for marginalized students. Under Dr. Williams’ leadership, schools experienced increased academic performance, decreased drop-out rates, increased attendance rates, and increased teacher performance.

Prior to serving in district level leadership, Deirdre was a turnaround middle school principal with the Apollo 20 initiative in Houston Independent School District, the eighth largest district in the nation. As a middle school principal, she transformed her campus from a twenty-year failing school to a competitive community school of promise offering every child seven courses for high school credit.  Williams was awarded the only non-charter Texas STEM designated academy in the Houston Independent School District after receiving accountability designations in mathematics and recognition for student growth. Because of her measure of success, she has been invited to several conferences to speak and present about her school transformation story, “From Fixing the Kids to Transforming the Adults.”

Dr. Williams currently serves as the Leadership Development Officer at Harris County Department of Education.  She provides certification preparation and leadership development to aspiring and current principals of schools in the 25 independent schools districts of Harris County.  Williams brought innovation and rigor to the Harris County Department of Education Principal Certification Academy to focus on education and the urban dilemma of achieving racial equity in schools.  Deirdre’s most recent article titled “Preparing Culturally Competent Leaders for Culturally Diverse Schools” was featured in the American Educational Research Association Division A Winter 2018 newsletter. As Leadership Development Officer she also developed the LEAD Institute for Executive Leadership (leading for equity and diversity) and developed the proposal for Texas Education Agency approval to offer superintendent certification. Dr. Williams has launched two leadership development initiatives for urban school transformation, Leadership Matters and Promising Practices for Priority Schools.

Williams is active in organizations that advocate for equitable outcomes for students. She has been a member of the School Reform Initiative for several years and served on the Board of Directors. Deirdre is an active member of the West Houston P-16 Council, which focuses on student development and successful matriculation from early childhood through college.  She serves on the board for the Urban STEM Initiative. Dr. Williams is also a Civics Leadership Fellow with Leadership ISD, an organization that advances educational excellence and equity by supporting leaders to shape policy, lead strategically, and effect change.

Dr. Williams completed undergraduate work at Alcorn State University. She has a Master of Science degree in Epidemiology from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston School of Public Health.  Williams earned a Doctor of Education in Curriculum and Instruction at Texas Southern University.  She completed post graduate work in Advanced Studies in Evaluation from Claremont Graduate University.  Dr. Williams and her husband, Johnny Williams, are both public school educators.