Dr. LaShawn C. Williams, LCSW

My Story

I’m a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a Doctorate in Education. I believe life is our greatest teacher.

I got into the profession of social work because I wanted to be a emergency room doctor. And a lawyer. And a parent. At the root of each of my childhood dreams was first, loyalty to what I saw my parents doing as healthcare professionals, and second there was a deep desire to help nurture and care for people outside of myself. Once I realized that I wasn’t necessarily fond of bodily fluids, I opted out of pre-medical studies as an undergraduate (then I became a parent & stuck with the bodily fluids of my offspring…).

It was a pretty regular day that I realized I wanted to start advocating for others. It was my sophomore year at university and I was taking a juvenile delinquency class in the criminal justice program. However, it truly felt like the heavens opened up. I knew that I had found my calling: to help people! 

You see, I was the new kid at every school I attended until I got to high school.  At each school, I learned to survive by becoming a listening ear and keeping a quiet mouth (very important!) to the popular kids, the misfits, the knuckleheads, and the nerds. I could see what happened when people felt heard, seen and valued, they started to change their interactions with others. That day during my sophomore year, I knew that I wanted to work with juvenile delinquents. I eventually found my way to social work for graduate school and began studying relational aggression in adolescent females. I completed a Masters degree in Social Work and another in Public Administration, hoping to work as a Federal Probation Officer. 

I ended up in higher education in 2005, working first with student government leaders, and in 2006, I began teaching future social workers. I began pursuing my doctoral education in 2008, focusing on educating health professionals. I studied the use of relationship in the classroom when discussing diversity concepts. In 2012, I became a clinician who worked with gang-affiliated adolescents, children, families, couples and adults. 

I learned the value of connection, the pain of disconnection, and the energy and excitement that came when relationships were transformed. I studied relational movement and the anchoring power of core values which fueled my commitment to empowering others with change strategies in the relationships that matter most.