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Let's get acquainted!

Personal Pillars
  • Wholistic Living

  • Lifelong Learning

  • Socioeconomic Elevation

  • Community Wellbeing

  • Family Connections

Professional Practice
  • Professor

  • Researcher

  • Writer

  • Consultant

  • Speaker

2024 USM Regents Faculty Award Recipient for Excellence in Public Service

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Organizational Transformation 

  • 8 million in direct impact to Baltimore City annually

  • 9.9 million in direct impact to Maryland annually

  • supporting 118 jobs -- 85 from member businesses and 33 staff

  • 55 member-owned business

  • 91% of staff living in Baltimore City

  • 1800 youth served onsite in 2018

  • the largest incubator in Maryland as ranked by the Baltimore Business Journal

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​This descriptive case study examines the launch, operation, and outcomes of Makers Unite, a collaborative emergency PPE production project spearheaded by Open Works. Open Works was able to use institutional trust, community collaboration, and Lean Manufacturing practices to produce 28,270 face shields in 56 days, averaging a production rate of 496 per day. The project included six full-time staff members, five temporary part-time staff members, a network of 388 volunteers and their printers, and two partner organizations until its conclusion on June 12, 2020. The study reveals best practices for establishing Lean small-scale manufacturing, developing institutional trust, building community collaboration, and developing a more agile supply chain in healthcare equipment production and other sectors of the economy.

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Makerspaces are redefining the landscape of innovation and entrepreneurship globally, revolutionizing how we assess social and economic impact. As these collaborative environments gain prominence, there is a need to understand their influence on technological advancement and social capital. This report explores the evolving assessment methodologies for makerspaces, highlighting their role in shaping the future of relational ecosystems and innovation. Specifically, it delves into the rise of makerspaces in the USA, with a spotlight on Open Works in Maryland, and the pivotal role of Coppin State University in advocating for manufacturing policies. By synthesizing traditional approaches to impact assessment with social network analysis, this report helps to advance a new impact assessment paradigm for local production in the region and beyond.

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Excellence in Entrepreneurial Learning (EXCEL) is a follow-up research project to the 2017 Annie E. Casey Foundation report, "Reshaping Workforce Development in Baltimore: Ensuring Community Voice and Expertise Guide Us." This 2017 report revealed that teens and young adults in Baltimore, ages 16 to 29, "crave entrepreneurship and resources to build businesses that are free from discrimination and benefit their communities."

The EXCEL research is a landscape analysis of entrepreneurship instructional programs serving the same demographic studied in the 2017 report. Thirty-five organizations participated in this innovative design, which included traditional interviews, questionnaires, and observations. These methods helped describe program models, success metrics, stakeholder value, trauma-informed approaches, and support for learners beyond launch. Additionally, the design assessed each phase of the study to discover more effective approaches to studying youth entrepreneurship.

Media

I believe that common interest can be the seedbed for trust where historic distrust exists. Trust drives community-centric solutions.

EICAC 2024 WJZ Baltimore 

Capitol Hill Maker Faire 2019

Capitol Hill Maker Faire 2019

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Urban / Rural Solutions to Common Economic Problems

Dr. Ron Williams - New England Maker Summit 2019

Dr. Ron Williams - New England Maker Summit 2019

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2019 Eurpoean Conference

on Innovation & Entrepreneurship

University of Pelopennese 

Kalamata, Greece

2019 New England Maker Summit

MakerspaceCT

Hartford, Connecticut

2020 Industry and Inclusion Project

Academic Advisor

2020 Capitol Hill Makers Faire

A Makerspace's Response to COVID-19 PPE Shortage

Recent Articles
& Contributions

One of my ambitions is to contribute to the academic, corporate, and community discourse concerning issues that matter.

"Top Workplaces are like nurturing communities"

Baltimore Sun

November 29, 2018

Creating a University Driven "Ingepreneurial Ecosystem in West Baltimore: A Strategy for

Rustbelt Revitalization

Metropolitan Universities

Spring 2017

"To Know Us Is To Love Us: Developing a Culture of Data-Informed Inclusivity

Nation of Makers: Make the Data

December 6, 2019

How a Baltimore makerspace is encouraging trust between local residents, businesses, and institutions

Brookings Institution

December 10, 2019

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Racial Equity and Advancing the Future of Manufacturing

Contributor

June 23, 2020

The Century Foundation

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A Trust Framework for Economic and Socioeconomic Advancement

Conference Proceedings ECIE 2019 Academic Conferences and Publishing International Limited

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Industry & Inclusion: A Blueprint for Action

Contributor

June 22, 2021

The Century Foundation

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Industry & Inclusion:

Manufacturing Workforce Strategies Building an Inclusive Future

A UMA Report

Recent Conference Attendance &
Presentations

Social impact may be measured individually and collectively. Presentation of innovative ideas is one way to "move the needle." 

September 2019

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October 2019

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November 2019

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This series consists of three one-hour sessions, focusing on key areas of a sustainable makerspace: Financials, Growth, and Leadership. Participants will gain an understanding of metrics that can be measured and tracked within their organization. The team will be utilizing data from the Nation of Maker's 2019 Survey of Makerspaces to show examples of metrics and patterns to identify in your makerspace. We don't expect to have a definitive answer at the end of each session, but a template and a path forward for an organization to assess, set goals and track through the year. 

Sustainability: Building & Supporting an Ecosystem
That Sustains Us All - Nation of Makers June 3-6, 2020

© 2023 by Ronald C. WIlliams PhD 

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