A Servant Heart with a Leader’s Vision: Meet Sandra Williams

One of our core values here at Concorde is being community-based. It's at the heart of everything we do!

Service learning projects are a part of our student curriculum, and we love to open our campus doors to offer preventative and responsive care to our friends and neighbors by hosting health fairs, clinics, and informational expos.

Beyond training our students to make positive impacts within the places they live, we encourage our associates to participate through our Concorde Cares initiative.

One associate who has been making waves in her end of the ocean is Sandra Williams, a Graduate Employment Specialist at Concorde's Memphis campus.

She was recently elected to a Board Member position with the Mid-South Medical Group Management Association (MGMA).

A journey fueled by desire

We caught up to learn a bit more about her rise to leadership and about her personal journey ties into the professional reputation of Concorde.

As the co-chair for the community affairs committee on the Mid-South MGMA, she has the "pleasure of deciding on community organizations that need sponsorship."

"The sponsorship includes raising awareness, donating funding, and increasing their voice in the Memphis community," explains Williams.

She also works with other committee members to identify venue locations, plan monthly luncheon events and book guest speakers for the group.

To be elected to this type of position, a group member must nominate another. And it didn't happen by accident. It's a journey that Williams began long before being nominated.

"I identified myself as a potential leader by being an example to others," she said.

From proactively networking with employers and organizations to seeking opportunities for personal professional growth through webinars, workshops and wise counsel, Williams worked to continue to develop a strong portfolio of skills and attributes to bolster her passion with field-based credentials.

Opportunities come rushing in

Williams found that serving with Mid-South MGMA was only the tip of the iceberg. Her position broke open other opportunities to be involved in the local community.

Within a year, Williams was invited to be a Board Member for Dress for Success and to serve as a local Rotary Club Community Activist.

And as her network grows, so does Concorde's. During her service, she's been able to introduce Concorde to the movers and shakers in Memphis.

"So many wonderful partnerships and relationships have resulted from our monthly luncheons," said Williams, "Being able to connect professionals from Methodist LeBonheur Hospital, West Clinic, St. Francis, and many more with our program directors, extern coordinators, and Campus President has been really fruitful."

Among other connections, Mayor Jim Strickland was a recent commencement Keynote speaker. Concorde - Memphis is now an approved receiver of male business attire through Memphis' Dress for Success program, an ambassador for the female counterpart business attire program, Dress for Success, and will serve as host to 10 eager participants of Memphis' MPloy initiative later this summer.

"I pride myself in giving the best opportunities for our students and alumni," said Williams, "the wonderful thing about me growing and networking is how it allows me to better assist in placing graduates and serving as a wealth of resources, events, activities, and clubs, that my graduates can call on."

Now that's what we call a good old-fashion win-win!