Meet the Conference Chairs
Dr. Emily Allen Williams
Dr. Emily Williams has 30 years of expertise with 10 in government as a grants director/program coordinator and 20 in academia. Williams is an exemplary performer with extensive experience as a grants director, vice president/academic affairs, vice provost/assessment and curriculum, academic dean, department chair, and conference director.
A Fulbright Scholar, Dr. Williams holds a Ph.D./D.A.H from Clark Atlanta University and Harvard University certification in Higher Education Management and Leadership.
Her expertise extends beyond the academic, governmental, and nonprofit landscapes in her continued service as a board and committee member with organizations as varied as community health boards, international accreditation organizations, and community cultural organizations.
Dr. Kendrick Johnson
Dr. Kendrick Johnson is the founder of Frontier Educational Consulting and a nationally recognized educator, speaker, author, and consultant. He began his career as an ELA teacher in Chicago, where he developed a passion for instructional excellence and equity. Over the years, Dr. Johnson has served in multiple roles across the K–12 spectrum—including instructional coach, director of curriculum and instruction, and school-level administrator—spanning elementary, middle, and high school settings.
He later expanded his impact by working with teacher residency programs, helping prepare the next generation of educators through innovative, practice-based models. Dr. Johnson’s areas of expertise include student engagement, restorative classroom management, critical thinking and complex reasoning, Fail-Forward Culture, data-driven instruction, aligned and coherent assessment systems, and culturally relevant and responsive teaching practices.