Burgess Executive in Residence Jimmy Williams '83 on Why the Liberal Arts Matter
As part of his Burgess residency, Jimmy Williams spoke to classes about his entrepreneurial path into the business world. Photo by Stephen Munchel.
From Dickinson to the U.S. Navy to multistore McDonald's franchisee, the political science grad imparts life lessons
video by Stephen Munchel
James E. “Jimmy” Williams Jr. '83 (political science) returned to Dickinson recently as an executive in residence with the Burgess Institute for the Global Economy, sharing lessons from a career that has taken him from the U.S. Navy to entrepreneurship.
Williams served eight years as a Navy pilot before launching his business career. Today, he's president and CEO of Estel Foods Inc., which operates nearly 30 McDonald’s franchises in Illinois and Missouri.
For Williams, that varied path reflects the value of the education he received at Dickinson, and he credits the liberal arts with preparing him not for one narrowly defined career but for the ability to adapt and pursue new opportunities.
“The education that I got here led me to believe that I could do anything," he says.
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Published October 1, 2026