Welcome Williams Pelegrin, our Outreach Services Manager

After an exhaustive search that ranged throughout the last year, we are delighted that thanks to Williams, our search is over! Beginning May 10th, Hilltop Artists will grow our team by adding new Outreach Services Manager Williams Pelegrin.

Said Executive Director Dr. Kimberly Keith, “I look forward to working with Williams in this reimagined Outreach role. I’m sure he will bring a new energy to our team and provide much needed support for the students in all of our programs.”

The Outreach Services program is vital for Hilltop Artists. The Manager provides the necessary wraparound services our youth may need, should they be facing any challenges outside the classroom.

The Outreach Services Manager supports Hilltop youth by providing services, referrals, mentorship, and advocacy. They lead program recruitment and enrollment, as well as take the extra steps to engage parents and guardians, keep Hilltop Artists connected to the community, and to grow service networks.

This is compassionate, anti-racist work, guided by diversity, equity, inclusion, trauma-informed care, and social and emotional learning.

We’re excited to introduce Williams in his own words:

Born and raised in the urban jungle that is New York City, Williams is a first-generation Dominican-American who earned a BS in Psychology from Fordham University in the Bronx.

In 2012, he worked as a field researcher with the university on its 4Rs+MTP project, which was completed in conjunction with the Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility.

The project not only trained and supported teachers in promoting social and emotional competencies, but also provided coaching and support centered on student-teacher interactions.

Williams then moved to Colorado to pursue and earn a Master of Social Work at the Newman University School of Social Work in Colorado Springs. While there, he interned at Russell Middle School in 2015 and at Pikes Peak Suicide Prevention in 2016. Both experiences involved working with at-risk youth in different contexts, drawing out Williams’ desire to work directly with youth.

From there, Williams moved back to New York City and worked at Partnership with Children in 2017 as a bonafide social worker working directly with at-risk middle school youth. He then moved back to Colorado and was a supervisor for Maple Star Colorado’s Key Essential Elements of Permanency (KEEP) program in Colorado Springs. The program utilizes a family’s strengths to identify challenges, foster self-sufficiency, and keep them engaged throughout the process.

The moving didn’t stop there, as Williams racked up more miles and moved to Washington in 2020 to accept a role as a URM Case Manager with Catholic Community Services. In the role, he directly worked with unaccompanied refugee minors and their foster families. He identified and coordinated services, assisted in cultural preservation, and helped prepare youth for eventual independent living in the United States.

With all this moving, it’s not surprising that Williams is excited to continue planting roots in the wonderfully eclectic city of Tacoma as Hilltop Artists’ new Outreach Services Manager.

When he’s not busy sorting out his work life, he’s trying to explore as many trails as possible with his wife and take some pictures while he’s at it. He’s even picked up the guitar, but please don’t ask him to play something other than chords. It’ll be embarrassing for everyone involved.