Dr. Geneace Williams, Esq., has a career that spans law practice, business leadership, academia, the faith community, and executive level Board leadership. Her expertise includes corporate defense law, diversity equity & inclusion (DEI), ethics, strategic planning, and leadership development. Dr. G (as she is affectionately called) has a history of leading change and managing conflict and crises utilizing strength-based methods. She helps others exercise a more thoughtful and solution oriented approach to today’s dilemmas and has successfully connected organizations and communities to ideals that foster growth and advancement. With a heart for philanthropy, she previously served as Chair of the Board of Directors for the Northern Illinois Food Bank (NIFB) and currently serves on the DEI Advisory Committee and Executive Advisory Team for the DuPage Children’s Museum, the DEI Committee of the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce, and the Diversity Task Force and DEI Working Group of the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus.

Geneace is the author of Leadership DASH: Breaking Through the Finish Line, an insightful work that gets at the heart of how people become leaders of impact. Having spoken in diverse venues around the world, Dr. G’s strategies for leadership have positively influenced many.

She holds a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Illinois and practiced law many years prior to her work in the consulting arena. She also holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) with ethics as one of her main areas of study. Dr. Williams previously served as a Law and Ethics Lecturer at Benedictine University and taught Humanities and Ethics at the College of DuPage. She holds a certification in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University and in early 2023 completed the ILCMA, UIC and MMC Learning to Operationalize Racial Equity Training Program created specifically for municipal entities. She is a frequent speaker and mentor to many. Currently, she serves on staff at the City of Naperville as its inaugural Diversity Equity and Inclusion Manager. Dr. Williams spearheads Naperville’s internal and external work toward “creating an inclusive community that values diversity.” An ordained minister, Geneace values the unique perspective her full background brings to the work and is guided by her life’s principle: “A leader’s impact encourages others in the pursuit of purpose.” Two adages are at the core of her approach to life, “positive change presupposes confronting your growing edges” and “the possibility of extraordinary begins at the edge of comfort.”

Keynote speaker will be presenting Tuesday morning in the auditorium.