Paul Willis
Family And Community Empowerment
Full name: Paul Willis
Please call me: Mr. Paul
Title: Family Partnerships Facilitator (aka The Family Guy. I work to create positive experiences for parents and families on our campus.)
Birth date: March 23
Hometown/state: Boston, MA
Years at Floyd: This is my 4th year at Floyd, and my first year as the Family Partnerships Facilitator.
Last Full Time Position: Previously, I spent 9 years at City Year, starting in Boston before moving to Sacramento to start up City Year Sacramento.
3 Songs that pump me up: Talib Kweli “Get By”;
The Roots “Doin’ It Again”; The Fugees “Ready or Not”
Three words that describe me: DJ Khaled. (I know
it’s not 3 words but DJ Khaled is my spirit animal.)
Favorite color: Black
What gets you up in the morning: Believing in
who I am and what I’m doing
Who is your hero: My grandmother
If you could go on vacation anywhere right now, where
would it be: Kingston, Jamaica or Cairo, Egypt
Last great book read: “The 4 Disciplines of
Execution” by Chris McChesney, Jim Huling, and Sean Covey
What is one thing that people may not expect about
you: I can’t dance to hip-hop music even though I’m a
hip-hop artist. My neighborhood was predominantly Puerto Rican,
Dominican and Cuban, so I learned how to dance salsa, bachata and
merengue before learning how to do the robot.
What builds your trust: Respect and honesty,
even if I don’t like the truth, I’ll respect you for telling
me.
What brings you joy: Basketball and Old
School/90’s Hip-Hop and RnB
Comfort food: Jamaican food, but when that’s not
available, I love Italian food
Quote to live by: “Buddhism teaches that nothing
happens by chance. Everything has meaning. Please be convinced
that your inner life is already endowed with everything you need.
No matter how difficult your situation may be, you are alive
now.”