Email: LaQuana_at_preventioninstitute_dot_org

La'Quana Williams, MPH is an Associate Program Director at Prevention Institute, where she leads national, state, and local initiatives that advance health equity, racial justice, and systems transformation. She partners with public agencies, community-based organizations, philanthropic partners, and cross-sector coalitions to design equity-centered strategies, facilitate collaborative processes, and translate complex challenges into actionable approaches that strengthen systems and improve community health. She also leads Prevention Institute's Health Equity & Racial Justice Team, advancing organizational learning, staff development, and internal strategy.

Since joining Prevention Institute in 2017, La'Quana's role has evolved from leading project-based work to shaping organizational strategy and leadership across the organization. She has guided large-scale technical assistance, facilitation, qualitative analysis, and capacity-building efforts with local, state, and national partners while helping strengthen Prevention Institute's internal infrastructure for advancing health equity and racial justice. Her work spans governmental public health, community safety, organizational transformation, and cross-sector collaboration. She has contributed to the development of proposals, organizational learning initiatives, and practical tools that support both Prevention Institute's mission and its long-term strategic growth.

Before joining Prevention Institute, La'Quana served as Director of the Salinas Valley Health Professions Pathway Partnership, where she led a regional initiative to strengthen health career pathways through cross-sector partnerships. She previously worked at the Monterey County Health Department as Health Equity & Cultural Competency Coordinator, leading countywide efforts to embed health equity into organizational practice through workforce development, policy development, and systems change. These experiences continue to shape her collaborative, systems-oriented approach to advancing equitable public health practice.

La'Quana holds a Master of Public Health and serves as an adjunct lecturer, teaching undergraduate public health courses that prepare the next generation of public health practitioners through an emphasis on health equity, systems thinking, and social justice. During her time at Prevention Institute, she has contributed to and led a range of initiatives and resources, including the W.K. Kellogg Foundation portfolio, the AESOP's Leadership Network, Building Bridges: Advancing Health Equity and Racial Justice Through Public Health Practice, and the Timeline of Resistance. Across her work as a strategist, facilitator, educator, and organizational leader, she is committed to helping institutions build the relationships, capacity, and shared understanding needed to create lasting systems change.