Upper Division Dean of Students for Grades Nine and Ten, Ronald Williams is an asset to the Berkeley community whose many duties and busy schedule help ensure the well-being of all. Dean William’s day, which starts at 7:45 a.m. and lasts at least until 5 p.m., is quite long. Though his official title designates him as the dean of the underclassmen, he says that the two deans often help each other out with issues that pertain to students not in their designated grade levels.

Dean Williams’ responsibilities cover a wide range. “My role also is to investigate, to research, to encourage, to provide leadership, [and] to educate. It’s not just discipline.” His daily administrative duties include handling all ninth and tenth grade discipline problems, going to administrative meetings and looking into any problems with attendance. Dean Williams also teaches two freshman PE classes in the morning. Katlyn Duncan ’16, who had Dean Williams as a PE teacher last year, describes him as “energetic” and “happy”. Duncan praised Dean Williams, saying “he was fair. He always made sure the teams were equal.”

When he is not in class you might find Dean Williams busy answering the phone, talking to parents on the phone or dealing with school safety issues. He says that on an average day he receives anywhere from “two to fifteen parent calls. It depends on the day.” Dean Williams also attends many sporting events and concerts. The types of meetings he goes to are usually “parent meetings, parent coffees, counselor meetings, [and] club meetings.” He usually tries to eat lunch around noon or 12:10 and often only gets about 15 minutes to eat. Dean Williams’ busy days often go late into the night–he says that sometimes he may not leave campus until 9 or 10 p.m. “Friday is not ever, ever, ever, a shorter day,” Williams adds. According to him, leaving at 4 pm would be a “short day.”

Dean Williams also notes that his favorite thing to do at school is “to see all 567 kids. My goal is to see [the] students’ faces, to cheer them up, give them a high five, to encourage them, to give them advice. When they are sad I make them smile.” About his busy and often unpredictable schedule, the dean says that “no two days are the same. You cannot plan ahead; it will never be the way you plan it to be. At any given time something can throw your whole day off.” Dean Williams says that he wants, “just to see the kids happy. The happier they are the less stress they provide for the adults.”

Every day is new and different for Dean Williams and his many jobs and tasks keep him on the go. Dean Williams clearly cares a lot about the well-being and happiness of the students of the Berkeley Upper Division.