Jay Williams, religion senior, is a pastor, a cheerleader and now, a father.
Williams recently adopted his two twin nephews, whom he had been fostering for the past year and a half.
Williams said the process of fostering took some time.
“It was around spring semester sophomore year,” Williams said. “I had a sister who got into a little legal trouble. I was not 21 at the time, which is the age you have to be to officially foster, so I had to wait a few months. As soon as I turned 21, the boys were able to move in with me.”
The boys were officially adopted on Aug. 26.
Williams said the boys are now 11 and growing up fast.
“They just transitioned into middle school. They got into a really good school, and I was hoping that diversity and inclusion was a focus there, and it is,” he said. “One of them is getting into theater, and he’s even auditioning for Hairspray Jr. at his school.”
Williams said he wasn’t expecting to be a parent in college.
“I knew I was going to foster at some point in my life, but I didn’t expect it to happen this soon,” he said. “Sometimes they will come to class with me if they’re out of school, and all of my professors know about them.”
The trickiest part of the adoption process was the legal work, Williams said.
“It was rather extensive,” he said. “The adoption itself was easy, but it was just the paperwork that was challenging. Even post-adoption, I still get things from my lawyer.”
Williams said the three of them live on-campus in Cokesbury Court Apartments.
“The housing department graciously offered us enough room to stay there,” he said. “They originally lived in Seminole County, and we’ve lived in Oklahoma our entire lives.”
The boys enjoy on-campus activities, Williams said.
“They consider themselves just as much a part of this campus community as everybody else,” he said. “They love the back to school bash we’ve had every year.”
The boys have enjoyed some on-campus productions as well, he said.
Williams, also a member of the OCU Cheer team, takes the boys to practice with him in the morning.
He said he hopes his kids will grow up to be tolerant people.
“They had a different environment growing up than I did, which I appreciate. And I hope they learn to appreciate it too,” he said. “I hope they learn to love people and grow from that.”
Andrew Tompkins Lewis, acting junior, said Williams is his cheer big, which is a mentoring relationship within the cheer team. Tompkins Lewis said Williams is responsible for a lot of his growth in college.
“He’s really helped me develop into the person I am. He’s always been one of the best role models I have in my life,” Tompkins Lewis said. “He’s a heck of a pastor as well.”
Tompkins Lewis said the boys are very well-behaved.
“They spend most mornings at cheer practice before school playing basketball, throwing a football or working on homework,” he said.
Tompkins Lewis said he thanks Williams for his presence in his life.
“He’s one of those people who will be a big part of my life for years and years,” Tompkins Lewis said.
Williams said trusting a higher power and trusting others is the way to overcome change.
“This is definitely a journey that I would not be able to do by myself,” he said. “The university has helped out a lot, and I have friends and family who live here. It truly takes a village, so just trust where God has put you and know that you are capable even when you don’t feel capable.”
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