Author: NY Weekly Staff

The fight for liberty, equity, and justice against racism has been ongoing for centuries. Many people in history have taken on this fight in varying capacities, impacting individuals, communities and the world in different ways. Sonia L. Williams-Lewis joined the league of those fighters, determined to make a difference. From the age of seven, she began to show how undeterred she can be with causes she strongly believes in.

Sonia L. Williams-Lewis, M. Ed. is an equity expert and founder of ASCRIBE Educational Consulting LLC and Edify Humanity 501c3. She is not just a fighter for equity in the world; she has walked the entire length of her journey implementing equity strategies centering humanity.. Sonia L. Williams-Lewis showed the first signs of being an indomitable young woman at the age of seven when she refused to stand and say the Pledge of Allegiance because she neither saw, nor experienced “liberty and justice for all.” 

Growing up, she quickly recognized the need to take her public education seriously, as she acquired qualifications enabling her to walk through doors traditionally closed to people from her shared community. She obtained a degree in History and Psychology from Spelman College, a Master’s degree in Education and Secondary Teaching Credential from San Francisco State University, so as to boldly benefit from the privilege of being “qualified,” to speak on issues associated with educational equity.. 

She focused on teaching for nearly two decades and became known for showing up as an advocate for the most marginalized in the community. She embodies not just the characteristics described by the lyrics of LL Cool J’s popular 1990 song “Around the Way Girl,” her integrity epitomizes what it means to be streetwise and book smart.

A proud wife, mother, educator, entrepreneur, author, and thought leader, she is tickled and humbled by those who describe her as an “unflinching, unapologetic community warrior.” She is committed to ensuring equity in the world through a variety of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, like, but not limited to, auditing policies and procedures, aligning missions and visions with service-based needs, and healing the harms of racism and disparity so they aren’t revisited on the next generation.

Her company, ASCRIBE Educational Consulting LLC, specializes in transformative equity strategies for individuals, communities, and organizations. Her nonprofit, EDIFY Humanity 501c3, tackles border issues associated with racism, marginalization, discrimination, and other societal norms that divide and exclude.

Sonia L. Williams-Lewis believes every organization should have an equity specialist that makes sure their work culture and environment are cohesive, progressive, and healthy for everyone, regardless of race and social standing. ASCRIBE Educational Consulting LLC offers different services, associated with professional and personal development which most sustainably leads to mindset shifts that change belief and behaviors. Part of the approach intentionally includes the addressing of representation. If organizations are to seriously endeavor efforts of inclusivity, they must be intentional about hiring and retention efforts that replicate the world in which we live.

Oftentimes organizations allow the beliefs and behaviors of a few, shape the culture and climate for the masses. In light of the public murder of Geoprge Floyd, Sonia conitues to challenge organizational leaders to go beyond the acknowledgement of racism, by urging commitments to training that require time and resources. Its not just the professional and personal development that matters, some leaders require individual coaching, so the curation of anti-racist work and learning environment can sustain the test of time and the bend of the moral arch.

Sonia has positioned ASCRIBE to offer speaker services, workshop facilitation, webinar and content development, program moderation, etc, where she infuses observable behavior patterns in the classroom, her lived experiences, and dynamics of the power structure to articulate the need to concretely work towards equity and mitigate the harm of racism. The goal and hope is to dig deep at the root of the problems associated with racism, implicit biases, and social inequities. It is no longer enough to acknowledge the systemic, institutional, and structural impacts of racism. Right now, organizations must be willing to invest and take a stand to improve the situation for the greater good of everyone..

ASCRIBE Educational Consulting takes pride in delivering transformative client experiences that leverage equity. Sonia’s primary goal is to create long-term shifts that positively impact an organization’s bottom line of productivity. The company’s approach entails using leadership and utilizing the varied perspectives of marginalized people to develop strategies that lift and center both their needs and voices.

Sonia L. Williams-Lewis looks forward to a world where people from disenfranchised groups have access to all the resources and tools needed to thrive in every area of life. She helps organizations and individuals imagine an anti-racist world, so future genreations won’t have to heal from racialized trauma. But, it starts with recognizing time is of the essence for engaging courageous conversations about race, racism, and white supremacy. This is what it means to build and sustain the anti-racist world we all deserve to live in.

While most people can write, not all of them have what it takes to publish a profitable manuscript. Cognizant of this, insightful business coach Taurea Vision Avant has decided to utilize her expertise in the field to help other aspiring writers, especially public speakers, coaches, and those in networking marketing, compose a powerful, impactful, and mostly profitable book.

The inspiring woman is a prolific author who has penned more than 15 books, including The 10k Book, Don’t Go Broke Trying to Be a Business Owner, and How Not To Be A Broke Author. On top of that, she is a renowned keynote speaker who was one of the first-ever to conduct a virtual TEDx conference.

Taurea Vision Avant is the brilliant mind behind Show Your Success, where she has impressively helped over 5,000 speakers, coaches, and network marketers write profitable books that allowed them to scale their business.

Aiming to elevate her mission further, she created The Book Profits Club™, which is designed to help authors promote, profit, and perform. Its vision is not only to help clients become published authors, but more importantly, it seeks to make them profitable.

The business coach clearly discussed how the platform aids speakers, coaches, and home-based business owners. “Eighty percent of authors write these amazing books only to find that they never sell more than 250 copies of their books. Then they sign with these publishing companies that have no idea on how to properly market and leverage their books,” she explained.

She went on to add, “The majority of authors write about the wrong thing. They write about what they want to write about vs. what the audience wants to read about. This is where we come in. We first help authors write the right book, but we also help authors learn how to promote. profit and get their books to perform.”

Since its inception in 2019, the club has already changed the lives of thousands of authors, speakers, coaches, and network marketers. The enterprise has fulfilled its goal and continues to guide other aspiring entrepreneurs on the path to success through the power of books.

When asked what prompted her to come up with the innovative idea for The Book Profits Club, Taurea Vision Avant looked back on her journey as a home-based entrepreneur trying to find ways to expand her brand. Despite already having incredible achievements, the business owner struggled to scale her enterprise as most people have a biased perspective against network marketing.

“So, I wrote a book because they said when you become an author, you build authority. I wrote my first book at the time called A Vision to Freedom, now called A Six-Figure Vision, and when I saw the doors opened up immediately. I was no longer seen as a woman who was in one of those pyramid businesses,” she proudly shared.

Taurea Vision Avant is undoubtedly a remarkable force that advocates for aspiring entrepreneurs. She plans to help more than 1,000 authors generate more than $10,000 per month within the following year.

Further, the visionary sees herself in her lifetime impacting the lives of 10,000,000 men and women in mind, body, and soul. However, the intuitive individual remains open to new trends that may arise from new technologies and innovations.