About Gregory D. Williams, EdD
Dr. Gregory D. Williams serves as president of Odessa College, a position he has held since January 2007. Accepting that post was a true homecoming for Dr. Williams, who began his journey in higher education as a student at Odessa College in 1983.
Before earning his doctorate in higher education administration from Baylor University, Dr. Williams’ educational journey also included the completion of three degrees from The University of Texas Permian Basin: first, a bachelor’s degree in psychology, with a certification to teach psychology, history, and learning-disabled students, followed by two master’s degrees, in education mid-management and in psychology, respectively.
Since Dr. Williams’ return, Odessa College has experienced nothing less than a major transformation. Solid community support and a successful bond election in 2010 allowed OC to launch and complete “Vision 2015,” a $78 million, campus-wide new building and renovation program. During that same period, Dr. Williams initiated several other innovative programs designed to enhance both community and student engagement with the college. OC continues to experience major transformations in the midst of “Vision 2030,” a $150 million, continued campus wide renovation. His long-standing personal dedication to the health and fitness lifestyle led to the launch of the very successful “30 for 30 Fitness Challenge”, which takes place annually during the month of September, and promotes both school- and community-wide participation in health and fitness activities for that entire month. Drawing once again upon outstanding community support, Dr. Williams also initiated the “Drive to Success®” program at Odessa College.
Dr. Williams has led the OC team in breaking every major enrollment record, student retention record, student success record, and fund-raising record previously held by the college. His leadership has set OC on the path to becoming the best community college in the nation. A Pathway to 60x30TX In February of 2016, OC was named the first AVID demonstration site in higher education in the U.S. In 2018, Odessa College was awarded Achieving the Dream’s Leah Meyer Austin Award. In 2017, 2019, and again in 2021, Odessa College was named an Aspen Institute Top 10 Community College. OC went on to win the Rising Star Award for Community College Excellence from the Aspen Institute in 2017 and 2019, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s 2017 Star Award for the program presentation Eight Week Terms: A Pathway to 60x30TX, and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s 2021 Star Award for the outstanding efforts in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
On the local level, Dr. Williams currently serves or has recently served on the ECISD Education Foundation Board, Prosperity Bank’s Advisory Board, the Permian Basin Workforce Development Board, Odessa’s Comprehensive Master Plan Advisory Committee, ACCESS Advisory Board, ConnEctor Task Force, Odessa Chamber of Commerce, Odessa Rotary Club, Odessa Partnership, and the Education Partnership Leadership Team.
On the state level, he serves or has recently served as Chair of the Texas Association of Community Colleges, the TACC Executive Committee, the TACC Rural College Committee, the TACC Legislative Committee, the Texas Student Success Council, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Business & Community Advisory Council.
On the national level, he serves or has recently served on the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) Board of Directors and Executive Board. He also served as Chair of AACC’s Committee on Community College Advancement and on the 21st Century Commission on the Future of Community Colleges’ Developmental Education Redesign Committee. Additionally, he serves on the Aspen Institute Change Management Task Force, the JFF Policy Leadership Trust for Student Success, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges’ Peer Review Advisory Board, NJCAA Racial Equity Committee, and the Belk Center National Advisory Board, Ivy Achieves Advisory Council, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Business & Community Advisory Council. Dr. Williams was appointed to Chair of the Achieving the Dream Board of Directors in February, 2022, and continues to serve. He has also served on the Belk Center for Community College Leadership & Research Advisory Board since December, 2019.
Dr. Williams and his wife, Karen, have two sons, Kiaran and Gregory, and one daughter, Kara, who also is a graduate of Odessa College – notably as one of the first Dual Credit students to earn an Associate Degree from OC before graduating from high school.