About our Namesake: Mamie L. Williams

Mamie Williams encourages her students to “be a miracle.” Inspired by Mamie’s dedication to the education and development of children, the teachers, parents, and students of Williams Science and Fine Arts Elementary Magnet School continue to strive for the same high standards today.

Mamie Luella Williams was a noted teacher, counselor, and administrator in Topeka Public Schools for 45 years. She was born December 12, 1894, in Greenwood, South Carolina. At the age of sixteen, she was one of only three black girls among a class of 92 to graduate from Topeka High School. While attending Washburn College, she won department honors in mathematics and German. In 1915, she graduated from Washburn as the only black student in her graduating class of 90. After graduation, she began to pursue her lifelong desire of teaching. Her teaching career began in 1918 and for 25 years Ms. Williams taught at Buchanan Elementary. She then went to teach at Monroe and later served as principal at Washington Elementary. While serving as principal, Ms. Williams continued to carry her regular teaching load yet received no pay increase for the title of principal.

One of her most famous students was Linda (Brown) Smith, the plaintiff in the landmark case Brown v. Topeka Board of Education. In the book “A Time to Lose,” by Paul Wilson, Smith described her former teacher as, “A brilliant woman. A staunch, old-time
teacher who really made you apply yourself. She explained a subject well and then stuck with you until she made sure you understood it thoroughly. I respected her a great deal.”

Ms. Williams continued her formal education at the University of Kansas where she received her master’s degree. In 1982, she received an honorary doctorate degree in mathematics from Washburn University. Her ultimate goal in life was to be exactly what she was: a teacher extraordinaire! She wrote four books on black history in Topeka schools and served as secretary for the Interstate Literacy Society in 1935. Later, she journeyed around the world with the National Education Association promoting educational values.

Ms. Williams loved mottos. One of her favorites was: “Life is infinitely rich in fine and adequate compensation. Never a door is shut but several windows are opened.” She also encouraged her students “to be a miracle.”

On December 31, 1986, Ms. Williams died at a Topeka convalescent home. She was 92. In the fall of 1996, Williams Science and Fine Arts Elementary Magnet School, named in honor of Ms. Williams, opened its doors at 1301 SE Monroe. Where today, we continue to honor her legacy in guiding all students to become miracles through the open doors or windows in their future.