Her Story
About Ashley
Ashley Williams is the Housing First Co-Director and Internship Program Manager at Starting Over, Inc. in Riverside, California. In this role, she works with harm reduction and reentry populations, helping formerly incarcerated individuals and those with co-occurring disorders achieve housing stability and employment. She has over ten years of experience in social services and has been with her current agency for five years, having begun as an intern in 2020. Williams earned her bachelor's degree in sociology with a minor in Africana studies from San Francisco State and her master's of social work from Cal State San Bernardino. She also holds a Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialist certification and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa in May 2019. She values authenticity, balance, and time management in both her professional and personal life, and she advises young women entering the field to recognize that they have earned their place and to show up as their authentic selves.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Ashley
01What do you attribute your success to?
I am a Christian, so I'm a believer, and so I absolutely attribute my success not only to God, but also just my family's support as well. It's very... it's not... not even just family, but even my chosen family. Sometimes when I felt, like, down or, like, overwhelmed and didn't know what to do, like, just having my support system rooting for me regardless, no matter what. I think those are, like, the main two things.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
I would definitely say, as far as career advice, that like, whatever you choose to do, you show up as your authentic self in whatever form that looks like... you can't please everybody, so whatever you do, as long as you're your authentic self, then you're gonna attract those that are meant for you... definitely master the art of pivot. Like, the only thing that's constant is change, and so definitely being able to pivot and respond versus react.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Especially for young women, and identify as a Black woman... recognizing that irrespective of what space you are walking into, you earned your space to be there. You earned your right to be there... hold your head up high and rest in that... if you ever think, like, oh, no, like, look at, look at that certificate. That was an expensive piece of paper. No, you, you made it here. And so, you, you deserve to be in that space, and to take up space as well... I've always worn my natural hair to work, and you're just gonna have to be okay with it, because that is me.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
Certainly a lot of the greater challenges I see, especially with the population that I serve, is that we have folks that, Sometimes in their youth, sometimes not, but regardless, they, were convicted, they served their time, but they're still facing challenges afterwards. That felony holds over their head no matter what. There's housing as well... barriers to folks who supposedly, you know, I'm doing air quotes, did the crime, so they did the time... safe housing options, and that's why I definitely find it a privilege to be in harm reduction... It meets folks where they're at... provides them with shelter.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I definitely value time quite a bit... Your time is valuable and important, but also balance as well... you can always put your best foot forward, of course. But you do need to have that balance, so whether that looks like having specific work hours, and keeping to that, I personally do, I would delete my work email from my phone every single day at a certain time, because nope, y'all cannot... this is my off time.
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