Joanne Charles Lafortune
Doctoral Student
Joanne Charles Lafortune is a doctoral student in Educational Leadership & Policy Studies at Boston University Wheelock College of Education & Human Development. She aims to use her research to advocate for policy that will enable fair and equitable education for low-income, Black, and Hispanic students.
Joanne was nominated as a 2019 US Presidential Scholars Program’s Distinguished Teacher by a US Presidential Scholar recipient for her inspiration and influence and for showcasing exemplary instruction in the classroom. She was the first Black woman and Haitian individual to teach in the English Department at the Wheeler School, a leading independent day school in Rhode Island. Joanne is also the founder of Life Focus: a program that teaches critical reading and writing skills to underrepresented youth in her community.
Pronouns: she/her
Education
MA, Health & Organizational Communication, Bryant University
MA, African American Studies, Boston University
BA, English Literature, University of Rhode Island