Founder & CEO, DTW Equity Consulting, LLC
dtwequityconsulting.com | dr.darnellthigpenwilliams@gmail.com
Dr. Darnell Thigpen Williams is an educational leader, scholar, executive coach, and equity-centered systems strategist advancing justice-focused institutional transformation across K–12 districts, higher education, and mission-driven organizations. With nearly three decades of college teaching experience, more than twenty years in educational leadership, and thirteen years leading education in juvenile justice settings, he brings uncommon cross-sector expertise to complex systems change.
As Founder and CEO of DTW Equity Consulting, LLC, Dr. Williams partners with superintendents, executive teams, school leaders, and organizations to design racial equity-centered systems that drive measurable academic excellence, belonging, and organizational coherence. His services include executive coaching, district strategy development, leadership retreats, professional learning design, and keynote presentations focused on sustainable, justice-centered transformation.
DTW Equity Consulting (DEC) is a training and consulting company committed to education for social justice. Founded in 2021 by Darnell T. Williams, DEC partners with educators to achieve a greater social impact for improving classroom teaching and school leadership. Our services can be combined and tailored to meet your needs – from individual leadership development to larger-scale social
change.
The goals of DEC are to…
Williams has nearly 3 decades of experience in various settings: classroom teacher, curriculum writer, professional development trainer, entrepreneur, and adjunct professor. He has extensive training and expertise in curriculum design, professional development, and educational leadership. He is passionate about social justice and creating equitable access to education, housing, and health care for historically marginalized populations. He consistently advocates for those at the
margins of power and promotes culturally responsive and sustainable practices supporting equity, diversity, inclusion, belonging, access, and justice.
Williams is the Director of Professional Growth and School Culture in the Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at the Brockton Public Schools in Brockton, Massachusetts. In this role, he has established student equity councils in the middle schools and a student ambassador program at the
high school to elevate youth voices and foster student leadership across the district. In addition, he
oversees the district’s annual Achieving Change Together education conference, which focuses on principles of equity, diversity, and inclusion for over 3,000 employees. Williams also teaches at Cambridge College and Urban College of Boston. He provides educational consulting services to other school districts, schools, and organizations nationally on the change process and becoming an anti-racist, culturally responsive, multilingual, and multicultural organization.
Darnell creates an environment where everyone feels safe to grow. His professional development is inspiring, transformative, and deeply focused on social justice, equity, and inclusion. His expertise prepares educators to make a meaningful difference in the lives of their students.
Darnell Thigpen Williams has committed his life’s work to provide high-quality professional development to educators that is transformative and focused on social justice and equity. I have worked with him for 12 years and have participated in many of his professional workshops. He creates an environment where all feel safe to grow their professional practice. His unapologetic stance on diversity, equity, and inclusion strategies to promote educational equity for all youth is encouraging and inspirational. He holds us accountable and the breadth and depth of his professional workshops prepare us to move forward in our careers and lives with the understanding that DEI is essential in the education of our youth, imperative in our education system and the world.
Darnell has been a deeply valued colleague, friend, and thought-partner for more than twenty-five years. Our collaboration began when Darnell was a participant in a course I was teaching on effective instruction and classroom management. From the outset, he was a passionate learner, deeply committed to the design and development of anti-racist instructional strategies and curriculum for the teachers whom he was mentoring as the Director of Induction for the Boston Teacher Residency Program. Over the years we have shared and discussed countless books, articles, and lectures focusing on social justice and racial equity. We talk about activities to build inclusive learning communities, instructional strategies, and curriculum to create classrooms in which all students feel visible and valued in their diverse identifies and experiences, and ways to encourage teachers and school leaders to strengthen their understanding of racism and anti-racist activism. Darnell is an educator whose mission has never flagged: to make schools places that inspire each and every student to strive for excellence.
Making the decision to embark on diversity, equity, and inclusion is a commitment to the growth of an organization and its people. “DEI” work is particularly challenging for organizations because it requires people to face our country’s destructive history of oppression and persistent injustices which are mirrored in today’s society and workplace. I have worked closely with Darnell Thigpen Williams for 13 years. I can attest that he is a highly-skilled consultant and trainer who develops professional learning experiences that serve to build individual and group knowledge that result in a shared understanding of the many dimensions of social justice issues. He brings deep expertise to his clients and is adept at developing training experiences that are deeply meaningful for individuals from a diversity of backgrounds. Darnell has deep skills to create a trusting learning environment that enables participants to engage in dialogue around challenging topics so that opportunities for learning and engagement are maximized. Darnell is a unique and high-caliber trainer who brings deep insight, knowledge, and experience to anti-racist and diversity, equity, and inclusion work.
I have had the pleasure of working with Darnell Thigpen Williams in his role as Associate Director of DYS Professional Development. I have known Darnell since August of 2011. Darnell has exhibited staunch professionalism and competence in all areas of his position and he has been an absolute asset to the advancement of our Professional Development programming. He is competent, personable, and committed to working with the administration teams, schools and teachers to provide transformational professional development training that showcase the most current evidence-based practices and strategies that help support student academic growth and social development. One of the areas of expertise that Darnell focuses on as part of his professional development menu is that of social justice and equity. Darnell is truly committed to providing professional development that provides the participants with strategies and guidance that support diversity, equity and inclusion, culturally responsive practices and anti-racist approaches within the educational setting. His professional development is not just informative, but also interactive and collaborative while raising awareness of current themes to support the deep integration of the content in educational and community settings. Darnell’s professional development training is impactful and sustainable, which is essential for the deep understanding and implementation of the practices which create success and competency within the focus areas. It has been a pleasure working with Darnell!
