Equity Leadership: Research and Advocacy within Community of Practice

Grounded theory-building and transdisciplinary practices in the Public Health Economy

Community Perspective on Dr. Williams

“I am so grateful to you for everything that you have done to support us. We are extremely fortunate that you are in the community fighting so hard for us. Every community should have a leader like you who has a big heart and a lot of compassion and understanding of the residents and what they need and should have as residents in this city. You have pushed so hard along with us to make sure that our voices are heard and acknowledged. We are extremely grateful for your steadfast commitment to us and the community. There have been so many times that I have come into the room and knew that you had our backs..”

~ Commissioner Rhonda Hamilton, Washington, DC
(right in photo)

Dr. Christopher Williams


Christopher Williams, PhD (Public Health), is seeking employment opportunities in public health research, teaching, or senior administrative positions. Dr. Williams' unique combination of academic rigor, community engagement, and interdisciplinary work across structural determinants of health positions him as a strong candidate for a leadership role that can drive systemic change and advance health equity. Dr. Williams synthesizes his specialized knowledge of the public health economy to spur innovation in public health theory-building and practice, which has high potential for major funding given curricular and disciplinary implications. He has taught in academic and non-academic settings, as well as guest-lectured at local universities in Washington, DC. His Public Health Liberation theory is garnering national attention as a potential breakthrough on issues of persistent health inequity by focusing on synergisms, liberation, and interdependencies. He had a ten-year career in medical education research and administration that included national conference lectures, physician recruitment, program evaluation, and policy development.

His research and editorials have appeared in the American Journal of Medicine, Washington Post, Journal of Graduate Medical Education, Academic Medicine, and Advances in Clinical Medical Research and Healthcare Delivery, where his novel transdisciplinary theory of the public health economy is published. His dissertation study, The Critical Race Framework Study: Standardizing Critical Evaluation for Research Studies That Use Racial Taxonomy, filled a major gap in the literature on critical appraisal for public health research. Dr. Williams has extensive experience in the full life cycle of research from conducting systematic reviews, data collection, developing application packages, stakeholder engagement, data analysis, psychometric testing, and presentation. His latest community-based research contributed to the literature on the mental health impact of neighborhood change. Dr. Williams is devoted to his profession as demonstrated by his role as a journal reviewer, community liaison for research and policy, policy analyst, and internship director.

Dr. Williams’ interdisciplinary knowledge of sectoral influences on health including housing, economics, regulation, community relations, law, and legislative relations is a major strength. He has considerable hospital- and community-based instruction and research, arising from program management roles starting in 2007. He has secured grant funding for community-based opioid education and Narcan training and for establishing a health coalition among women leaders in public housing, in addition to managing a national grant program. He is also a creative arts freelancer, having received public funding for exhibition. The Smithsonian Institution Anacostia Community Museum featured his photography on environmental advocacy in Washington, DC. He has collaborated with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (Region 3) on cumulative impact, the Urban Institute, and the DC Healthy Housing Coalition.

National Webinar on Study Results of Critical Race Framework Study

Christopher Williams, the principal investigator for the Critical Framework Study, is hosting a national webinar on July 11, 2:00pm ET to discuss study results. Seating is limited. The Critical Race Framework developed a tool and training with quality evidence for implementation effectiveness, content validity, and interrater reliability to fill a major gap in the public health literature.

“True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.”

~ Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Image: Tyler Lloyd

Sample Media.

Environmental justice and community. Tyler Lloyd, Creator (right)