Ted Williams III

Ted Williams III is an educator who has taught Political Science at Chicago State University and the City Colleges of Chicago. He holds degrees in Public Policy Studies from the University of Chicago (M.P.P. ‘02), and Rutgers University (B.A. ‘98) and has spoken and written extensively on the topics of Religion and Politics, the Youth Vote, and African-American political engagement. He currently works as a host for PBS-affiliate WYCC television’s The Professors weekly talk show and has provided political commentary for BET-TV, WGN-TV, NBC-TV, WVON radio, Trumpet Magazine, and a host of online periodicals. He served on the negotiating team for the first part-time City Colleges faculty union contract and presently serves on the Chicago Public Schools’ Far Southside Community Advisory Council.   He is currently finishing his first book entitled The Way Out: Religion, Politics, and the future of the African-American Community.

In addition to this, he has also had an extensive performing arts career which includes commercial and industrial work for companies including McDonald’s, Empire Carpet, Six Flags, Federal Express, Kraft, and Accenture. He is the writer and producer of TORN the Musical, the South Loop Hotel’s Mystery Dinner Theater, and has conducted theater-based training for the Chicago Housing Authority and Starcom Media.  He is also a co-founder of The Way Christian Ministries, a non-denominational church in Chicago’s South Loop neighborhood. Above all else Williams considers his most important work his role as a mentor to numerous young people and as a husband and father to Roslyn and their three beautiful children, Gabrielle, Amaris, and Ted IV. You can read more about his work at tedwilliamsthethird.com