Dwight Anderson Williams II

Saint Paul, Minnesota, is the place of my formative years, and I went to high school in Charlotte, NC. I still say that Minnesota is where I’m from.

Shout out Yogi (my mom) for a lot, including showing me a times table around age 5, fighting for me across school systems, encouraging my inquisitiveness, celebrating Blackness, directing my energy into sports/exercise, trusting God when I was literally jumping off the rails, and telling me to read and be resourceful. All her work to keep my spirit alive helped me navigate through some troubling academic experiences without losing my interest in mathematics.

I don’t know if accomplishment describes the experience, but my niece saying that I’m her second favorite mathematician lives in my heart; and that was before I got a PhD in math. She made me certified. Then I defended my PhD via Zoom in front of family and friends who were there for the 0.8 GPA semester, the high school woes, and other not-too-hot moments.

Keeping faith can feel like a daily accomplishment, and I will say that right now I feel more connected to those who dream, that is, see the real of today without losing joy. In particular, I thank my wife Diamond Emelda Williams for our joint commitment to share joy with each other.

“Lean not on your own understanding” are words that are helping me trust beyond my own senses.

I’m still stubborn, and I’m stubborn enough to not want to be the same as I’ve always been. I’ve been blessed to survive some failures, disappointments, bad decision-making, and even some ridiculous close calls to serious harm. What is favor but a chance to be better than I was. And being better entails building off more than my experiences and my own views of them. It’s an ongoing process that I hope serves people beyond myself.