Joseph Williams is tall and lean, with a casual, unassuming presence. When asked about his accomplishments and goals, he answers with sincere modesty—often downplaying his own talents and achievements. But ask his academic and athletic mentors, and it quickly becomes clear there's more to Joseph than he might let on.
"He was a quiet person in class," says Dr. Houlihan, Joseph's adolescent psychology professor. "However, I noticed about mid–semester that he was outperforming everyone else. He pretty much never missed anything."
This from the student who, truth be told, was an athlete first and foremost. "When I came to MSU, basketball was life," Joseph says. "My schooling and social life were at a distant second. I did not believe in life without basketball."
Joseph was a starter on the MSU men's squad, playing on the 2004–2005 team that broke school records for number of victories, points scored, three–point field goals, and blocked shots. Coach Margenthaler remembers Joseph warmly. "He is one of the most honest, hardest working, and loyal players that have ever come out of our program."
His on–court success led Joseph to consider staying with the sport—he even thought about trying out for a European league. But he knew the danger of chasing a basketball dream that might lead to no end. "I didn't want that to happen to me," he says.
As important as basketball was to him, he was reluctant to think of it as his only option, which, as he says, "is one of those dangerous ideas that too many minority athletes fall into."
Joseph credits Dr. Houlihan and psychology professor Dr. Sarah Sifers for pushing him to think about continuing his education. Until then, he says, "it was the last thing on my mind to go to graduate school." Dr. Houlihan remembers telling Joseph that he was the number one ranked student in his adolescent psychology class. "He was outperforming some seriously impressive people. I felt that he could perform at the doctoral level, and I suggested that he give it some consideration."
During both his undergraduate program in psychology and his graduate program in counseling, Joseph distinguished himself as a promising scholar. At the University of Iowa, he'll research how factors such as cultural identity, oppression, and discrimination affect the educational and life experiences of African American males.
As a senior in 2004, Joseph did take steps toward graduate school and was accepted into the McNair Scholars program, which helps students from under–represented groups prepare for doctoral studies. Michelle Carter was the director of the McNair Scholars program at the time. "As with many students who are the first in their families to earn a bachelor's, a Ph.D. often seems like a pipedream," she says. Ms. Carter could see that the decision to stick with school was not coming easily for him, but, she says, "once Joseph enrolled in the graduate program in counseling and student personnel at MSU, he just seemed to thrive."
In 2005, Joseph began pursuing a master's degree in counseling and student personnel, where his advisor, Dr. Diane Coursol, says he clearly ranks within the top 5% of students she has worked with over the past 20 years. In addition to Joseph's research skills, Dr. Coursol praises his approachability, sensitivity and sincerity in his interactions with others.
Joseph responds to such praise with characteristic modesty: "I want the opportunity to give to others what was not given to me and so many of my friends and family members—a helping hand in the midst of life's circumstances," he says. "I have a special area of interest in researching and working with African American male populations from at–risk environments because I was once one of these individuals, and, to a certain degree, I still am."
Joseph feels grateful for the encouragement he has received from the faculty and coaches at MSU. He also acknowledges that he didn't arrive at where he is easily. "I didn't trust that teachers were interested in me," he says. "A lot of people talk, but very few people take that next step and put their words into action. That's what I found here, especially from Michelle Carter—she was a big help, a big influence."
Growing up in a lower–income household in Kansas City, Kansas, it may have seemed unlikely to Joseph that he would eventually pursue a doctorate degree. "In my family, graduating from high school is a big deal," he says.
But a Ph.D. does appear to be in his future—he has been admitted to the doctoral program in counseling at the University of Iowa. When he learns he is the first McNair Scholar from MSU to be admitted to a doctoral program, he reacts with surprise. "I didn't know that," he says, slowly shaking his head and grinning. "I guess it shows the program works."
Joseph says that his acceptance into a doctoral program hasn't really sunk in yet. "It probably won't hit me until I start my first class." Nevertheless, he's already given some thought to his future research goals: "I'm interested in focusing on how factors such as cultural and ethnic identity, oppression, racism, discrimination, demographics, and socioeconomic status play a role in the attitudes, values, beliefs, education, and experience of African American males."
Now there's a statement from a future Ph.D.
