Linh-Trang Williams ’15/’19 MBA began her career path on the campus of Olivet Nazarene University (ONU). A Kankakee native who was recently divorced and raising two sons, she earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration.
Her first job after graduation was Coordinator of Student Life at Kankakee Community College. Earning her Master of Business Administration degree led to her next career opportunity: Executive Assistant to then-Kankakee Mayor Chasity Wells-Armstrong.
In 2021, Linh-Trang connected with City Colleges of Chicago and joined the staff of Harold Washington College. She served first as College Director of Special Projects and then as College Director of Events and Programming. 
Today, she is Executive Director of College Initiatives and Projects for Malcolm X College. In her current leadership role, Linh-Trang oversees key institutional projects and initiatives. Her responsibilities include project management, social media oversight, legislative affairs engagement, and managing special projects that align with the college’s mission and goals. As a member of senior leadership, she reports directly to the college president and serves as a liaison for marketing and communications, ensuring alignment between institutional priorities and public engagement.
“This role requires a dynamic approach to leadership, fostering collaboration across departments to drive innovation and institutional success,” Linh-Trang says. “The advanced knowledge, strategic insight and professional development I gained through earning my MBA at ONU, combined with my natural leadership skills, have helped me excel in my career. I lead with confidence, purpose and integrity.”
Finding the Treasure
For Linh-Trang, Olivet’s MBA program stands out because of its commitment to excellence, faith-based principles and the supportive learning community. She also appreciated how the program’s flexibility, with both structured and virtual learning options, accommodated her needs as a working professional.
“ONU’s program integrates real-world experience that bridges the gap between theory and practice,” Linh-Trang says. “Students are gaining practical insights that are applicable to their careers.” 
As she approached the end of her degree program, Linh-Trang chose to participate in ONU’s global immersion learning experience in the Czech Republic. She had never traveled to Europe before this trip. The daughter of her U.S. Vietnam War veteran father and her Vietnamese mother, whom he married and brought to the U.S. to live, she was familiar with other cultures. But being immersed in the unfamiliar Czech culture — attending church, assisting with English-Czech communication, seeing castles for the first time, encountering organizations that were helping people start new businesses — gave her a deeper understanding of international business, cultural dynamics and service leadership.
“I remember visiting a castle on our trip and seeing the 600 steps we had to climb up into a spiral at the top,” Linh-Trang recalls. “There were no elevators to the top, no water, no bathroom nearby. I seriously thought I wasn’t going to make it. Then one of the members of our ONU group, Brett Douglas ’19 MOL, a former athlete, kept telling me I could do it. I pushed myself, and I made it to the top!”
Growing Through Challenges
That achievement began to inform Linh-Trang’s leadership style and accomplishments. While she was on staff at Harold Washington College, one of her biggest challenges and proudest moments was leading a 2022−2023 mural design project to honor Mayor Washington’s centennial birthday. Working with muralist Judith Mayer on the design, addressing funding challenges, and organizing the actual painting of the 40’x8’ mural, she helped to create a permanent marker of unity on the campus.
In her current position on staff at Malcolm X College, she accepted the challenge of making sure the fall 2024 registration process continued while the Democratic National Convention took place in downtown Chicago, August 19 through 22. “I managed the transfer of 7 college departments to an off-site location so the registration process could continue,” Linh-Trang says. “We registered approximately 3,000 students in a 3-week time period, a feat that had never been done before.”
In her education and her career, Linh-Trang recognizes the importance of people and organizations remaining true to who they are and modeling their values in their actions. She has seen the power of these commitments in her own life and at Olivet. “I believe in leading by example,” she says. “Don’t talk about it, be about it. Allow your principles to guide all your decisions and actions.”
Learn more about ONU’s graduate degree programs at Olivet.edu/academics/graduate-programs. For more information or to enroll, email onlineadmissions@olivet.edu or call 877-465-4838.
