<img width="500" height="408" class="FloatRight" alt=" starlawilliams500px" src="/site/files/oldnewsfiles/StarlaWilliams500px.jpg"><strong>UPDATE:</strong> A memorial service has been scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 3 at noon in room A180 of the administration building on the Harrisburg campus. It will be videoconferenced to room 126 on the Delaware campus. All are welcome.
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The original story appears below.
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The Widener Law community is mourning the loss of a beloved administrator who led several key programs on the Harrisburg campus, including the Public Interest Initiative. <br><br>Starla Williams died suddenly last weekend while traveling in the Lancaster area. She was 50. <br><br>A native of Pittsburgh, Williams joined the Widener Law faculty as an assistant professor of legal methods on the Harrisburg campus in 2008. She transitioned last year to become Harrisburg’s multi-cultural affairs officer, director of externships and coordinator of pro bono programs <br><br>“She was making her mark in so many ways,” said Interim Dean Robyn L. Meadows. “She was responsible for multiple programs that are central to the mission of the university and to the success of our law students. She was thriving in those roles, and we were so fortunate to have her energy, dedication and leadership.” <br><br>Williams founded the Jurist Academy on the Harrisburg campus in 2011. The pipeline program for undergraduates of diverse backgrounds welcomed 34 students during its four years under her direction. Williams coordinated it all – from reviewing applications and planning every minute of the two-week immersion experience, to escorting participants on field trips and staying in touch with them as they determined their future plans. <br><br>“I would say Jurist Academy was one of the best educational experiences I’ve ever had,” said Tiffany Chang Lawson, executive director of the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Asian American Affairs. She attended the inaugural program in 2011 and has remained close with Williams, calling her a friend who “reminded me to always be grateful for my blessings and always try to do my best.” Lawson, a graduate of Dickinson College, said she plans to apply for admission to the Harrisburg campus next fall, in large part because of Williams’ influence. <br><br>“The level of excellence she demanded from her students was high. Because of that expectation we all worked incredibly hard in the Jurist Academy,” Chang Lawson said. “We saw how much work she put into that program. We wanted her to be proud of us.” <br><br>Williams also began the Harrisburg campus annual observation of National Pro Bono Week, held each October. She brought the national initiative down to a local level on campus, creating special functions for each day of the week, designed to draw in community partners, salute pro bono role models and inspire a passion for public service in Widener students. <br><br>Alumna Rachel Hadrick ’13 met Williams her first year of law school, when Williams served as advisor to the Black Law Students Association and Hadrick became the organization secretary. Williams guided the group toward worthwhile service projects, including a holiday family event with social service agencies. <br><br>“She definitely instilled in all of us the need to give back,” Hadrick said. “She had a passion for people and for students.” <br><br>Williams created the Pro Bono Service Provider award, which the Harrisburg campus bestowed as part of the special week’s festivities. Last year the inaugural award was given to Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice J. Michael Eakin. This year’s award went to Commonwealth Court Judge P. Kevin Brobson ‘95. Student Melissa Toaltoan spoke at the event, held Oct. 23 in The Gallery. She worked a summer externship in Brobson’s chambers, after Williams made her aware of the application opportunity. <br><br>“She just wanted to help us succeed,” Toaltoan said. “Whenever you went to Professor Williams she made it all about you and what she could do to help you.” <br><br>Associate Professor Anna P. Hemingway, director of Legal Methods, said Williams helped students understand they need values to guide them in their professional lives, without judging what those values should be. <br><br>“I saw somebody who really tried to instill the importance of values and professionalism in our students,” Hemingway said. “And she led by example.” <br><br>Williams was always appropriately dressed, behaved professionally and understood the importance of little things, Hemingway said. If students sent her email with the wrong tone, Williams would take the time to explain how that reflected on them – and how that could hurt them in the business world. <br><br>Williams is survived by her father, a sister and a nephew with whom she was very close. She lived in Harrisburg and attended Kingdom Embassy church on North Fourth Street. <br><br>She earned her law degree from Duquesne University School of Law in 1990 and a master of laws degree from Georgetown Law Center two years later. She served twice as a judicial clerk in the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania and as a judicial clerk in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. <br><br>She spent time working in private practice, where she represented parents in dependency hearings. Later, she went on to serve as executive vice president for child and family services in a statewide nonprofit serving children and youth in foster care. She was a board member of Black Administrators in Child Welfare and chaired the Advocacy Task Force for the Pennsylvania Service Connect Team in Harrisburg. <br><br>Hadrick said Williams was the type of professional who wanted to invest in younger generations. That meant sharing lessons gleaned from her life at teachable moments. For Hadrick, now an associate at McNees Wallace &amp; Nurick LLC in Harrisburg, that is Williams’ legacy. <br><br>“Her spirit of pouring into someone else your experiences, and helping them not to make the same mistakes you made,” Hadrick said. “She was my biggest cheerleader and she encouraged me to do better things. And she would not let me off the hook.” <br><br><em>A viewing will be Sunday, Nov. 23 at the House of Law Funeral Home, 9406 Frankstown Road in Penn Hill, Pa. The funeral service will be held Monday, Nov. 24 at 11 a.m. at Mt. Ararat Baptist Church, 271 Paulson St., Pittsburgh. <br><br>The law school will hold a memorial service Dec. 3 on the Harrisburg campus at a time to be announced. In the meantime, students are welcome to leave notes of memory on Williams’ office door in the Administration Building.</em> <br><br>