Diaspora stalwart Dr Karren Dunkley humbled to receive OD

For service to the Jamaican Diaspora in the United States, Dr Karren Dunkley will be conferred with the Order of Distinction (OD), in the rank of Officer, on National Heroes Day, October 21.

The daughter of a corrections officer and an insurance salesman, Dr. Dunkley, whose mantra is “To serve is to live”,  recalls spending many summers in Elderslie, St Elizabeth, which is the birthplace of her parents and grandparents.

Dr Dunkley grew up in Ensom City, St Catherine, where she attended St Catherine High School and graduated as valedictorian in 1989, before transitioning to Wolmer’s Girls for sixth form.

She then moved to the United States on a student visa to pursue an undergraduate degree in political science and education at St John’s University.

“When I came, like most immigrants, I had to work and put myself through school. Sometimes I was working three jobs at once. I waited tables, I had a cleaning company, just to make ends meet,” she revealed in a recent interview.  

On completing university, her plan was to return to Jamaica, so she settled her credit cards, gave up her apartment, sold her car and then a phone call from St John’s offering her a full scholarship to pursue a Master’s in International Law changed the trajectory of her life.

“I took that scholarship and the rest was history. I ended up being here from that time. I never went back home,” she notes.

With a Doctorate in urban education from Columbia University’s Teachers’ College, Dr Dunkley has excelled as a deputy superintendent, principal, teacher, and coach, deeply committed to advancing educational equity and excellence.

Though not physically in Jamaica, her passion for helping to develop the country has never wavered.

She notes that she has several businesses in the land of her birth.

“I have been one of those Jamaicans who have had the opportunity to come to the United States but have always planted roots in Jamaica and ensured the viability of the Jamaican ecosystem and infrastructure,” she said.

From January 2020 to December 2022, Dr Dunkley served as the Global Jamaica Diaspora Council Representative for the Northeast United States, which covers 14 states, where she played a pivotal role in fostering partnerships that advance Jamaica’s national development goals.

“I led during the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic with a team of phenomenal individuals across the 14 states,” she says, noting that some 52 events were spearheaded by her team over the three-year period.

During her tenure, Dr Dunkley created infrastructure for inclusive engagement across states by establishing a think tank comprised of state leads and sector leaders in the areas of health and wellness, education and innovation, economic development and empowerment, crime and citizen security and faith-based partnerships.

Along with her team, Dr Dunkley secured US$3.6 million in forgivable government loans and grants through technical assistance for more than 30 small businesses.

Her team also provided temporary housing, food, financial, and counselling assistance for 125 international students who were displaced by the pandemic and collaborated with Remnant Church of God Seventh-day to feed 300 families weekly across Pennsylvania.

In addition, she led the registration of more than 500 individuals across Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania for Census 2020; provided pro-bono immigration assistance to 25 international students through immigration attorneys; engaged in policy discussions and advocacy with various government ministries and agencies, primarily the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade; and activated critical partnerships with the Embassy of Jamaica in Washington DC.

Dr Dunkley’s contributions to academics, philanthropy and the diaspora have garnered her a long list of accolades.

“I am energised by giving and by serving. The greatest gift in terms of serving the diaspora in this capacity has been the Jamaican people. I have to commend the team – the think tank, our sector chairs and our state chairs, who are absolutely fantastic.

“Even the young people who were stranded in Ukraine, we were one of the first calls, because people knew that we had built this ecosystem. I’m just privileged to have the opportunity to serve others,” Dr. Dunkley said.  

She describes herself as a “quiet worker and giver” who has always believed in advocacy and national advancement.

Dr Dunkley is humbled and honoured to be a recipient of the Order of Distinction.

“I don’t do service with any expectation of reward, so it’s a tremendous honour and I share this honour with all my partners in the diaspora,” she said.