Valerie N. Williams, Ph.D., M.P.A., is Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and Faculty Development at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center (OUHSC). In this role, she has responsibility for campus-wide academic affairs, academic integrity, and faculty development issues.  Academic Affairs includes academic programs, technologies, student accommodations, academic policies and procedures, interdisciplinary programs, and library personnel and resources. Faculty Development includes faculty career-focused onboarding, skill development, coaching and mentoring, and leadership programs for novice and seasoned faculty -- all supported by a small but mighty team.

Dr. Williams believes an organization's most important and valuable investment is in the people who bring its mission to life. 

Williams' research, program development, and evaluation work has always included projects and programs that enrich the array of career development opportunities for faculty. A year after joining the OUHSC College of Medicine faculty in 1989 Dr. Williams created the Health Sciences Center Faculty Leadership Program. Today, the Faculty Leadership Program has expanded to become an interprofessional faculty development, mentoring, leadership, and career-focused opportunity. Program experiences offer early-career faculty a structured and collaborative way to enhance their knowledge and skills to navigate goal alignment opportunities within the scope of responsibilities linked to their position and academic rank. Sponsored by the OUHSC Senior Vice President and Provost and the OUHSC Deans' Council the 11-month Faculty Leadership Program is open to any OUHSC faculty member recommended by their college leaders.  As program director Dr. Williams serves as a mentor and coach, working with faculty to develop, implement and assess academic career aims and progress.

Dr. Williams' research interests focus on academic career engagement, satisfaction, and vitality, and institutional and public policy focused on self-determination, inclusion, and community building to enhance learning and development. She has served as elected national board chair for the Association of American Medical Colleges and the Association of University Centers on Disabilities. She is the recipient of several national awards including the Carol J. Bland Phronesis Award from the Group on Faculty Affairs, Association of American Medical Colleges.