Debra Williams

Principal, James M. Singleton Charter, New Orleans

A native of New Orleans, Debra J. Williams was born to teach. She has been serving the students and communities of Louisiana since 1991 as an educator in the public school systems. During her 16 year career with Orleans Parish School, she worked in the capacity of a teacher, staff developer, and assistant principal. After Hurricane Katrina, Mrs. Williams relocated to Baton Rouge where she taught for 5 years in the East Baton Rouge Public School System. For the past 3 years, she has served as the principal of James M. Singleton Charter School, a prekindergarten through eighth grade school which holds a Type 5 charter managed by the Dryades YMCA. She and her leadership team are responsible for supervising the education of 520 students from Orleans Parish which are assigned to the school through the OneApp! Process instituted through the Recovery School District. Majority of her career has been spent servicing students and parents of the lower socio-economic population of the city.

Mrs. Williams earned her B.S. in Elementary Education and M.Ed in Education Leadership from the University of New Orleans.
She is an active member of St. Raymond and St. Leo the Great Roman Catholic Church where she teaches 9th and 10th grade religion and dances with the adult liturgical dance team. She is also a member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc. where she advises an undergraduate chapter at Southeastern University of Louisiana in Hammond.
She holds two beliefs close to her heart: “to whom much is given, much is required” and “every child is a story waiting to be told”.

She enjoys mentoring, traveling, reading, and enjoying the peacefulness of nature. She is the proud mother of three; an adult son, a teenage daughter and a 5 year old mixed Terrier named Buddy. She is the adoring wife of Ronald Williams.