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Ed-Dee G. Williams, PhD, MSW, joined the faculty at md´«Ã½¹ú²ú¾ç College School of Social Work in 2023. He obtained his PhD in Social Work and Sociology from the University of Michigan Joint PhD program in 2021. He also received his MSW from the University of Michigan School of Social Work in 2014. Prior to joining the faculty at BCSSW, Dr. Williams completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Level Up Employment Simulation Skills Lab and was a Research Associate in the Vivian A. and James L. Curtis Center for Health Equity Research and Training, where he received training in developing and evaluating technology-based mental health interventions.

Dr. Williams’s research centers on the mental health needs and experiences of Black youth and Black autistic youth, with a particular emphasis on examining depression and related mental health help-seeking behaviors. In his most recent work, Dr. Williams has begun developing an innovative simulation-based mental health help-seeking intervention to support Black autistic youth in gaining positive mental health help-seeking skills for depression and depressive symptoms.

He is part of a collective of Black male scholars that is currently examining Black male well-being and resiliency as a mechanism of positive health and mental health outcomes. He is also part of a new network of Black Autism scholars and scientists called the Black Empowerment in Autism (BEAM) network that looks to make autism research more inclusive and examine the ways that autism impacts Black children and their families.

Dr. Williams has a passion for supporting and serving Black youth and their families. He utilizes engaged community participatory research methods, mixed-methods methodologies, and a socio-ecological and sociocultural approach in his research to ensure his work allows the voices of Black youth and their families to lead.

Prior to pursuing his PhD, Dr. Williams worked as a clinical social worker providing therapy and counseling services to adjudicated youth in residential facilities. Though currently his clinical work is limited, he continues to provide clinical support, as well as work as a consultant for clinical services that target Black individuals.

Ultimately, his goal is to improve the mental wellness of Black youth and their families through rigorous innovative research, community engagement, effective policy change, and direct service.