Aaron Williams continues to provide expertise and support for efforts to strengthen RTI’s relationship with federal and state government agencies, policymakers, and elected officials. In this role, he draws on his extensive experience with both RTI and the federal government.
Mr. Williams joined RTI in 2003, as vice president of international business development, and held that position until 2009. He served as executive vice president of RTI’s international development group from 2012-2015, and later as executive vice president of RTI’s government relations and corporate communications group. Since 2018 he has served as senior advisor-emeritus for international development & government.
His long and distinguished career in public service and the private sector began with three years of service as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Dominican Republic. He served for 22 years at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), retiring as a career minister, the highest rank in the Senior Foreign Service. His awards include the USAID Distinguished Career Service Award and the Presidential Award for Distinguished Service. Mr. Williams has extensive experience in the strategic design and management of assistance programs in Latin America, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. He is a frequent lecturer and panelist on international development topics at universities, research and policy institutes, and at US and global conferences. He is an adjunct professor at the University of North Carolina – Gillings School of Global Public Health.
In 2009 he was appointed by President Barack Obama as Director of the U.S. Peace Corps, serving in that role through 2012. Prior to his appointment he co-led the Obama-Biden transition team for the foreign assistance agencies (USAID, MCC and PEPFAR). During his tenure as Peace Corps director, he led White House delegations to the 2012 presidential inauguration in Guatemala and to the bicentennial celebration of the independence of Paraguay in 2011. In 2015, he was appointed by President Barack Obama as the U.S. Alternative Representative to the executive board of the United Nations children’s fund (UNICEF).
Mr. Williams is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the American Academy of Diplomacy. He serves on the Board of Directors of World Education Services (WES), the Ron Brown Scholar Program, and IREX. He has previously served on the boards of CARE, George Washington University – Elliott School of International Affairs’ Advisory Board, the U.S. Global Leadership Campaign, ChildFund International, and the Institute for Sustainable Communities.
He received his MBA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and obtained a BS in Geography from Chicago State University. Mr. Williams is the recipient of honorary doctorate degrees from American University, the Monterey Institute of International Studies, North Central College, St. Mary’s College, and received the UCLA Medal, awarded for exceptionally distinguished academic and professional achievement.
