Heidi M. Williams, PhD

I am a Number 2 on the Enneagram test and an ENJF according to the Myers-Briggs tests...and those descriptions are accurate to a fault. I have taught in higher education for almost 20 years and homeschooled since 2020. I am currently a tenured Associate Professor at Tennessee State University, an Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in Nashville, TN. In addition to TSU, I have taught at Murray State University in Murray, KY and Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, IL, as well as one summer in Zhejiang, China. 

​

One of my proudest career moments was in 2019 when I was nominated and awarded Murray State University's Top 22 under 40 Alumni Award. This award was designed for  "honoring the most influential, innovative and inspiring Murray State alumni under the age of 40, who have distinguished themselves among their peers and continue to make a significant impact on the world."

​

I'm also humbled and honored to have been accepted in 2023 to deliver a TEDxTalk titled Homeschool to Higher Education: The One Point that Matters Most. Did you know that the United States spends billions of dollars each year on standardized testing? Imagine redistributing those funds into resources, smaller class sizes, and better pay for our hard-working educators and administrators. In this talk, I discuss my personal experiences with standardized testing and why I endorse home education. I believe homeschool gives families the freedom to deemphasize standardization and allows more space nurture a child’s creativity, sense of wonder, and desire to learn.