Jay Williams

2011 Honoree -- First African-American Mayor of Youngstown, Ohio

Five years ago, Jay Williams ran for mayor of Youngstown, Ohio, at the urging of a community grown weary of the former steel town’s political machine.

Williams’ supporters did not seem to mind that he was just 33 years old and had never held political office. Instead, voters were invigorated by Williams’ vision to re-establish Youngstown’s financial footing. They also admired his personal traits that embody self-reflection, responsibility, and building relationships.

Now in his second term as Youngstown’s first African-American mayor, Williams credits those relationships with the city’s business leaders and community activists for the accomplishments through the "right-sizing" initiative, Youngstown 2010 Vision/Planning. To date, the ambitious plan has helped demolish blighted, crime-ridden buildings, revitalized neighborhoods, and led to improvements in the city’s police and fire departments.

While bringing new jobs to the area remains high on the mayor’s "to do" list, progress in decreasing Youngstown’s unemployment rate was hastened by entrepreneurial efforts and federal grants. Such progress had led national and international cities to study Youngstown, which has a racially diverse population of approximately 81,000.

Although Williams’ career began in banking, the Youngstown native said his interest in public service surfaced in high school when he participated in a National Congressional Youth Leadership Conference. While majoring in finance at Youngstown State University, Williams worked part-time as a teller at First Place Bank, and later joined the bank’s management trainee program. His early banking years helped him form relationships with customers, many of whom were intimidated by the banking process.

"Some of our customers never imagined themselves as homeowners," he said, adding that he enjoyed showing them how to establish financial security.

Williams later joined the Federal Reserve Bank, further developing his professional and business skills. The position "gave me a higher level of confidence and sophistication from a banking and regulatory standpoint," he said.

After returning to his former bank employer as a vice president and underwriter, Williams later responded to his early interest in public service by becoming director of Youngstown’s Community Development Office.

Community and civic leaders, impressed with Williams’ willingness to tackle important issues, encouraged him to run for office. Williams’ leadership has been publicized in the Wall Street Journal, U.S. News & World Report and Governing Magazine. In the August 2009 issue of Entrepreneur magazine, Youngstown was cited as among the nation’s 10 best cities to start a business.

"Significance is more important than success," says Williams.