Educator Arthur Williams stood beneath a spotlight of statewide recognition May 9 as he accepted the 2025 Excellence in STEM Leadership Award from the Tennessee STEM Innovation Network. The applause that filled the Music City Center during the annual STEM Innovation Summit in Nashville was more than ceremonial – it was a heartfelt ovation from colleagues who were celebrating one of their own.
As one of Tennessee’s most prestigious honors in education, the STEM Leadership Award is reserved for innovators whose work reshapes how students experience science, technology, engineering and math. And by all accounts, Williams, 47, was a runaway favorite. He emerged as a clear choice among a large number of nominations, each one a testament to his transformative impact.
That impact is especially evident at East Ridge Elementary in Chattanooga, where Williams led the launch of one of the region’s first VW eLabs in an elementary school. His efforts didn’t just bring cutting-edge tools into the classroom; they redefined how young learners tackle challenges through hands-on, purpose-driven design.
Michael Stone, vice president of innovative learning at the Public Education Foundation and a longtime collaborator of Williams, was among those who advocated for his recognition.
“I’m a father of four,” Stone says. “Arthur is the kind of teacher you want your child to have. You want your kid in his class.”
Williams, ever humble, received the accolades and applause with gratitude.
“It was nice to get an ‘attaboy,’” he smiles. Seated in the lobby of the Administration Building at Girls Preparatory School – where he’ll begin a new chapter this fall – Williams shares what the recognition meant to him.
“The best part was that so many teachers from my school and beyond were willing to write letters supporting my nomination. When others see the impact you’re trying to make – and agree that it matters – that’s really cool.”
But for Williams, the true reward of teaching doesn’t come from a plaque or a standing ovation. It lives in the electric moments between a teacher and a student – when a struggling learner’s face lights up with realization and three words tumble out in disbelief and delight: “I did it.”
“That’s the Holy Grail,” Williams says. “That’s why I do this.”
A winding path
Long before Williams stepped into a classroom as a teacher, he was a student of the world. The son of a West Point-educated Army officer, Williams grew up on the move, crisscrossing the United States and living abroad in countries like Germany.
The constant change brought a broadened perspective, if not always stability. But one thing remained constant: education ran in the family. His mother and grandmother were both educators, and their example planted early seeds.
“I thought it was interesting – but I never thought it was going to be my career,” he recalls.
Academically, Williams was strong out of the gate. He earned National Merit Scholar status and demonstrated an aptitude for testing that often gave him an edge. That left time for other pursuits, especially soccer, which became a major focus during high school in Germany. But the game changed when he was accepted into the competitive North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics.
“It wasn’t easy anymore,” he says. “It was difficult, and for the first time, I was academically challenged.”
The shift was sobering. Gone were the effortless straight A’s. Slipping grades benched Williams from the soccer field and forced a reckoning that would shape his approach to learning.
“No matter how smart you are, there’s always someone a little smarter, a little faster, a little stronger,” he says. “I understood that in athletics, but I’d never experienced it academically. As painful as that lesson was, it helped me understand what was important as I left for college.”
Williams enrolled at the University of Oklahoma on a vocal performance scholarship, initially planning a career in music. But practicality nudged him toward education courses – just in case – and something unexpected happened.
“It was like God spoke to me while I was taking the first set of classes, saying, ‘This is what you’re going to do.’”
That moment changed Williams’ trajectory. As he explored education theory and the science of how children learn, he saw reflections of his own experiences – both his successes and his struggles. And he began to understand the role of context: that students bring their lives with them into the classroom – and those lives shape how they learn.
“Students don’t live in a vacuum,” he says. “They arrive at school carrying everything from their lives outside the classroom – and they return to those same circumstances at the end of the day. All of that affects how they learn.”
Williams earned a degree in elementary education and later completed a master’s in instructional technology at the University of Georgia. He began his teaching career in 2003 in Gwinnett County, Georgia, where he spent six years in elementary classrooms. In 2009, he moved to Newton, Massachusetts – a suburb of Boston – where he continued teaching at the elementary level before spending a year with middle schoolers in nearby Natick.
Williams and his wife welcomed their third child in 2013, prompting the move to Chattanooga.
“It’s different when you go from man-to-man to zone coverage – when you realize, ‘There are more of them than us,’” he laughs. “We decided it was time to be closer to family.”
After arriving in Chattanooga, Williams joined Calvin Donaldson Elementary Environmental Science Academy, where he taught for two years and continued to refine his student-centered approach.
But it was in 2014, through a professional development initiative led by the PEF, that Williams encountered a community of like-minded educators who would help elevate his work.
That connection would prove to be another turning point.
A shared vision
Williams’ teaching philosophy began to sharpen when he connected with the PEF through its Innovative Professional Learning Communities program. The Chattanooga-based nonprofit is dedicated to improving student outcomes in Hamilton County Schools and, for Williams, the partnership was both affirming and catalytic.
“The program gave me a vocabulary for the things I’d already been doing,” he says. “Just as important as what I was learning at PEF was how I was learning it. I could feel the support there. These were people willing to give their time, talent and treasure to help make my job better.”
In 2016, Williams joined PEF’s STEM Fellows program, a move that deepened his sense of alignment with the organization’s mission.
“I saw that they had the same mindset and beliefs as me,” he says. “This was a group that was trying to accomplish many of the same goals.”
A profile of Williams on the PEF website captures that shared vision: “STEM Fellows gave Arthur the language and structure for the kind of teaching he had always believed in – an approach grounded in trust and driven by creative problem-solving,” the article reads. “It affirmed his belief that when students are empowered to take ownership of their learning, and when educators are trusted to guide them with purpose, powerful things happen.
“And in a time when education often feels overly data-driven and obsessed with test scores, Arthur’s philosophy stands out.”
Teaching beyond the test
To grasp what happens in Williams’ classroom, it helps to know his philosophy – one that sees STEM not as a collection of isolated subjects, but as a mindset for learning and a blueprint for teaching.
“STEM is more than science, technology, engineering and mathematics,” he says. “It’s an instructional framework. We don’t teach one thing in isolation – we teach the connectedness between subjects.”
That belief forms the backbone of Williams’ approach to education. In his view, the traditional school model – dividing the day into separate rooms and rigid subject blocks – misses the point.
“No one wakes up in the morning and says, ‘I’m going to ‘science’ today,’” he says. “None of these things exist in isolation, but we still teach them that way. You’re in this room to learn Spanish, then in that room to learn math. STEM integrates material across the curriculum so students can see how the math they’re learning is connected to the literature they’re reading, and how the literature connects to the science they’re studying.”
That integration helps students understand not just content but also context, he adds.
“The best question a student can ask is, ‘Why do we have to learn this?’ And we should have an answer. I told one kid, ‘I used algebra and geometry yesterday to figure out how to cut a piece of wood so it intersected at a 45-degree angle.’ Our students are going to use this knowledge. It’s our job to show them how – and to connect the dots across subjects.”
Williams is quick to acknowledge that traditional, subject-specific teaching can be effective.
“We have excellent teachers who teach one subject extremely well, and their students love their classes,” he says. “I’m not saying STEM is the only way. But I am saying it has a higher ceiling. The moment you say, ‘This math concept is important not only on its own but also in how it connects to everything else,’ you’re reaching for that higher ceiling.”
Williams’ broader view of education goes beyond academic performance. For him, the goal isn’t to produce test takers – it’s to nurture capable, thoughtful, empathetic human beings.
“Math and literacy are the coins of the realm, but they’re not the only currency that matters,” he submits. “If we want to prepare students for life, we also have to teach them how to think critically, work through challenges, collaborate and treat others with kindness.”
Given the sheer number of hours students spend in school, Williams says he believes educators have an enormous role in that shaping process – and a responsibility to approach it with intention.
“We’re not here just to cram material into their heads for a pencil-on-paper test,” he says. “We’re also here to help them become better people. And I need to be thoughtful about how I do that.”
Stone sees that intentionality as central to Williams’ work.
“Arthur has taught in some challenging situations and has been able to connect with students from all walks of life,” he says. “It’s hard to teach a hungry child. Arthur has faced that challenge. And he knows you have to be human first and a teacher second. He knows you have to create a connection. That’s baked into the ethos of who he is as a person.”
Opening doors early
After leaving Calvin Donaldson, Williams spent six years at Lakeside Academy of Math, Science and Technology before moving to East Ridge Elementary. It was there that he became involved in a project that would amplify his vision for integrated, hands-on learning: the Volkswagen eLab.
Designed to bring cutting-edge tools and real-world problem-solving into the classroom, the eLab became both a proving ground and a platform for Williams’ teaching philosophy.
The idea for the labs began in 2017, when Volkswagen partnered with the PEF to launch an ambitious effort to bring innovative learning spaces to Hamilton County Schools, starting with a $1 million seed investment to open fabrication labs.
For the first three years, however, those eLabs were limited to middle and high schools. Elementary students were considered too young for the equipment and, perhaps, too unpredictable for the risk.
“But we had enough Arthur Williamses of the world saying, ‘We can do this well in elementary schools if you give us a chance,’” Stone says. “Arthur had a wonderful reputation, so when he was one of the teachers saying, ‘Let’s try this,’ it was a no-brainer.”
Williams made his case not just as a teacher, but as someone thinking critically about equity in STEM.
“When I heard that the Volkswagen eLab was going to be in middle and high schools only, I said, ‘You need this at the elementary level – especially for girls, because you’re losing them before they get to middle school.’ Their sense of self, the kind of careers they think are possible for them – that identity forms early.”
Though Lakeside Academy wasn’t selected during the initial round of elementary eLab expansion, the team at East Ridge saw an opportunity. Aware of Williams’ experience in STEM and his advocacy for digital fabrication at the primary level, they brought him on board to lead their application – and ultimately named him the school’s eLab specialist and STEAM (the “A” stands for “Arts”) instructional coach.
The application succeeded, and East Ridge became one of the first elementary schools in the district to receive a VW eLab.
Williams knew the technology would be exciting. But what he really looked forward to were the moments when it became real to students – when the unfamiliar gave way to discovery.
“Generally, when students and teachers first step into a STEM environment, they feel uncomfortable,” he says. “There are wires, tools, machines shooting lasers – it can be intimidating. But I love the moment when a student realizes, ‘This was an idea I had. It started as a sketch on a piece of paper and now it’s 3D printed. It looks like something I could buy – and I made it.’ I see that over and over and over.”
Stone says Williams has played a “critical role” in pioneering what digital fabrication can look like for younger students. “That first elementary eLab opened up a world of possibilities,” he says. “And Arthur helped make that happen.”
Since 2017, the PEF has grown its initial investment in eLabs to nearly $10 million, thanks to continued support from Volkswagen and other partners. That funding has helped launch 55 eLabs in Hamilton County, with the model expanding to Milwaukee, Indiana, Detroit and West Tennessee.
Meanwhile, Williams’ influence extended beyond the classroom.
Leading through collaboration
As his own practice evolved through PEF programs like Leadership Fellows, Fund for Teachers and VW eLab specialist training, Williams made it a priority to bring other educators along with him.
Over time, that meant stepping into leadership – sometimes formally, often organically. He mentored new teachers, coached incoming eLab specialists, and helped strengthen the network of STEM Fellows alumni who continued to exchange ideas and strategies after their cohorts ended.
In his role as STEAM instructional coach at East Ridge Elementary, Williams embraced opportunities to influence educator development schoolwide. He even helped secure funding and write grants to send groups of teachers to professional conferences like the Tennessee STEM Innovation Summit.
“It was rewarding to give our teachers the chance to see what others were doing,” he says. “Sometimes, the best way to improve what happens inside your own building is to get outside of it for a while.”
Stone says Williams’ commitment to peer learning has made him a resource beyond his own school.
“Arthur has an incredible passion and diligence to bring innovative learning opportunities to his students. When you enter his classroom and see him interact with kids, you can see the joy that comes over their faces. He’s relentless in that pursuit. But he doesn’t let his impact stop with his students. He’s been vigilant to make sure he shares his insights, ideas and work with other teachers.”
That generosity has built what Stone calls “a significant cadre of teachers” across Hamilton County and beyond who turn to Williams for guidance.
“He’s a trusted adviser,” Stone says. “People lean on him. They call him when they have an idea. And he shows up.”
Scaling the vision
After years of honing his STEM philosophy in individual classrooms and across school teams, Williams found himself asking a bigger question: What would it look like to take this approach beyond a single classroom – to build a culture of project-based, interconnected learning across an entire school, or even a system of schools?
“We saw what that looks like at STEM School Chattanooga – and it’s brilliant,” he says. “All of the subject areas involve project- or problem-based learning, and everything is interwoven. The teachers collaborate, and the students see how everything connects.”
That vision aligned with the goals of leaders at GPS, who were exploring ways to modernize their approach to STEM education. A conversation with someone in upper administration led to an invitation for Williams to join the school and help bring that vision to life – an opportunity he welcomed.
This fall, Williams steps into the role of design technology lab director at GPS – a position that blends teaching, innovation and cross-disciplinary collaboration. In this role, he’ll teach a reduced course load using his signature project-based, cross-curricular approach while integrating the tools and technologies available in the school’s Design Technology Lab (DTL).
He’ll also work with faculty to revitalize and modernize the lab, helping teachers incorporate its resources into their own instructional practices. In addition, he’ll focus on expanding GPS’ partnerships with STEM and STEAM businesses and organizations to strengthen student career exploration and create new internship opportunities.
For Williams, the move represents both a fresh challenge and a natural extension of his mission.
“I’ve seen what STEM can look like at the classroom level and as an instructional coach,” he says. “Now, I have a chance to help build something larger – something that can influence an entire school culture.”
Alongside this professional leap, Williams is embarking on another journey: pursuing a doctoral degree at Lee University.
“Teachers are always learners,” he says. “Whether it’s earning a degree, going to conferences, networking with other educators or reading research, I’m constantly learning. It’s good to get back into a formalized learning space so you can remember what it feels like to be a student.”
Teaching that lasts
For Williams, the holy grail of teaching has always been that electrifying moment when a student moves from doubt to discovery – the moment they exclaim, “I did it.”
One such moment came in the form of a fifth-grade girl working on her capstone project: a functional claw machine game built from scratch. Williams didn’t tell her it would be hard; he told her she was “perfectly capable.” And she proved him right as she dissected a miniature machine, rewired it, reprogrammed it, and then decided to customize it with LED lights, paint and sound triggers.
When the time came to solder the final connections – an intimidating task for a student who’d only worked in code – Williams held a soldering workshop so she could complete the project. Watching her melt the metal and see her creation light up, he saw the look he’s chased throughout his career: a spark of wonder and ownership. She looked at him and smiled, “I did that. And it works.”
In the classroom, Williams meets every academic standard, checks every box and masters every instructional framework, says Stone. But his most enduring legacy isn’t found in lesson plans or lab projects – it’s in the relationships he builds.
“Arthur does all the textbook stuff well – he’s an excellent teacher by every standard – but what sets him apart is his authenticity,” Stone adds. “Students can tell he’s genuine. They feel his passion and they respond to it.”
Williams hopes his students remember the content and carry the confidence that comes from creating something real, he says. But more than anything, he hopes they walk away with something deeper.
“When a school year is over, I hope my students leave thinking, ‘Mr. Williams loved me. He cared about me more than anything.’ I want them to know they mattered to me – whatever their circumstances were.”