Marie Williams, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (TDMHSAS), has built her career on a deep commitment to service, shaped by education, mentorship and lived experience.
Matthew Parriott, director of communications for TDMHSAS, describes working with Williams in glowing terms. “If it was biologically possible to put Pat Summitt with Dolly Parton, that is what it is like working with Commissioner Williams,” he said.
Williams’ path began as the first in her family to attend college. She earned degrees from Dyersburg State Community College and Austin Peay State University before continuing her studies at the University of Tennessee in Memphis. She later completed a master’s degree in social work at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville…