The city of Renton announced this week that Guy Williams has been named the city’s new Human Services Manager. Williams replaces Karen Bergsvik, who retired.
Williams will be responsible for oversight of all human service operations of the city with the goal of improving customer service, productivity and efficiency. He will work with local committees, organizations and businesses to promote available resources, develop partnerships and provide solutions.
Williams brings over 20 years of experience working in the public sector, including positions in education, health and human services and youth advocacy.
He was most recently with Casey Family Programs, a Seattle-based national foundation focused on foster care and child welfare. He was responsible for creating academic profiles, providing special education services and providing technical assistance and training on education advocacy and system navigation for foster care staff, public child welfare staff and families caring for youth.
His experience in education includes serving as the high school principal at the Seattle Urban Academy and four years as the education director for Seattle Public Schools (SPS). With SPS he supervised 400 employees and all K-12 principals, servicing more than 44,000 students. In addition he had responsibility for grants and contracts, program development/accreditation and curriculum oversight.
Williams worked for The Boys and Girls Clubs of King County developing and maintaining grants and funding proposals to assist at-risk youth graduate from high school and reducing the drop-out rate among minority students. He also spent a year with the City of Seattle’s Department of Social and Health Services developing and overseeing services for youths and young adults.
A native of Los Angeles, Williams graduated from Bishop O’Dowd High School in Oakland, California. He earned his B.A. in Communications from Washington State University and has a Master’s Degree in Educational Administration from city University in Seattle. Williams and his wife have three children and two grandchildren.
