A Trailblazer in Striving for Inclusion and Overcoming Adversity
Maureen Alphonse-Charles, F87
An internationalist from birth, Maureen Alphonse-Charles, F87 was born in Jamaica, spent her formative years in the United Kingdom, returned to Jamaica in later years, and spent time in her father’s native Panama. This global experience plus her longstanding passion around issues of change, innovation, and inter-cultural relations prompted her to consider graduate studies that would equip her to pursue these interests. Maureen’s sister, a history and literature major at Harvard, told her that the best school that she knew of was the Fletcher School, with its legacy of education and research on those exact issues.
One of Maureen’s inspirations during her time as a Fletcher student was Jamaican Prime Minister Michael Manley for his commitment to social and institutional change. Maureen had brought a corporate finance tilt with her, having several years of experience in banking which she further refined with her studies, especially in courses with an emphasis on social change and conflict resolution. “The richness of the Fletcher experience was not only being able to focus on change issues, but also being able to look at the environment, international finance, trade, while also looking at issues of sustainability for small islands and countries who are trying to figure out their raison d'être and how to proceed in the post-colonial era. In that process, I learned that interdependence is always going to be the way.”
Additionally, a stint at the United Nations and a fascination with then-nascent environmental policy contributed to her appreciation for Fletcher. “Fletcher was in many ways made for people like me who are looking for an interdisciplinary education. One in which you can lead, learn to lead, and learn to collaborate. My big thrust was about bringing people and processes together and learning how cultures can respect each other and how you can achieve greater results by connecting in this way.”
Several professors, including Alfred Rubin, Robert Meagher, and Arpad von Lazar, made a big impact on her and the Socratic methods with which they taught her continue to guide her thinking today. “When you must deal with political issues, large or small, we are never going to be void of complexity. And so, having the tools that come from an interdisciplinary education will allow you to forge ahead with the courage and the confidence to manage whatever comes your way.”
Maureen is presently the Managing Director and Senior Vice President of Inclusion and Equity at Koya Partners/Diversified Search Group. She has served on the Board of Overseers for GBH Boston, as a regional judge for the White House Fellows Program, as a Board Member for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston, on the Member Board of Trustees at Boston University, and on the Board of Advisors here at the Fletcher School. Some of her best friendships developed during her time at Fletcher, including the one with her husband, Jean-Bernard Charles, F89, who is an ophthalmologist. They are the proud parents of a son who is a software engineer with an emphasis on entrepreneurship and a daughter who graduated from Tufts last year and was the Wendell Phillips Class Speaker.