She earned her doctorate in history (2001) from Case Western Reserve University and her Master's of Public Administration (1990) and Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies (1986) from the Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs at Cleveland State University. Her research focuses on African American history and culture, especially as it relates to education and religion in urban America. In the 2009-2010 academic year, she received the prestigious Fulbright Scholar's Grant, and she served as a Visiting Fulbright Scholar in the Department of History at Nigeria's Obafemi Awolowo University. Dr. Williams is the founder and director of The Initiative for the Study of Religion and Spirituality in the History of Africa and the Diaspora (RASHAD), editor of Traditions & Beliefs, RASHAD's quarterly newsletter, and a scholarly journal by the same name.