Forty Under 40: Christy Williams

Christy Williams thrives on making connections and developing relationships. That’s evident by her accomplishments in 13 years of an upwardly mobile career working in UAFS’ Office of Advancement.

A Lavaca native, Williams joined the university as director of donor relations. She earned promotions to major gifts officer and then to director of annual giving. In three years in that role, her work nearly tripled annual giving to an all-time in 2017.

Williams is most proud of developing her current job. She has created the university’s corporate and foundation relations (CFR) program from scratch for the past four years, building strategic corporate relationships on the university’s behalf.

She also manages the university’s corporate and private grant applications. That’s translated to an all-time high in grant funding and a significant increase in business partnerships.

“I’m proud that I can play a small role in making the connections to move our university forward, and I believe there is still unlimited potential for how this role and our advancement team can impact UAFS in the future,” she said.

Williams has a bachelor’s degree in public relations from Oklahoma Baptist University, and a master’s in operations management from the University of Arkansas. She started her professional career in 2006 as the first executive director hired by the Single Parent Scholarship Fund of Crawford and Sebastian Counties board.

Williams is a past president of the Junior League of Fort Smith, a 2010 Leadership Fort Smith graduate and a former foster parent. She’s currently involved with multiple civic endeavors and is a Western Arkansas Tennis Association board member.

“I love playing tennis,” she said. “It’s a lifelong sport, and it also has embedded friendships that I think are great.”