[3] Williams was raised in Covington, Kentucky, and then St. Louis, Missouri, where she graduated as valedictorian of her class as Sumner High School.

When Mount Holyoke administrators suggested that Frances might be more comfortable elsewhere, the implication was that as an African American she would be ill-suited to studies at an elite, New England women's college.

Fannie Miller thought otherwise and insisted that Frances enroll there; she went on to graduate in 1919 earning the distinction of Phi Beta Kappa.

[1] Williams was among a cadre of women—including Katharine Lumpkin, Juliette Derricotte, and Juanita Jane Saddler—charged with implementing the YWCA's interracial program.

[1] The Frances Harriet Williams Award for scholastic excellence was established by her family at Mount Holyoke College in 1981.