My Journey from Jamaica to the Alpha Group of Companies

I left Jamaica after the tenth grade and migrated to the United States. Wow! It was a culture shock. In my last two years of high school there, the differences were obvious. It was felt. In my experience, there seemed to be a shared trauma between African Americans and others from the Caribbean and other African countries. People separated into groups. Then those small groups were separated by friends from the same continent, countries, and the list continued. I wasn’t used to that. It was disheartening. And just like that, I had to fall into one of those groups, those cliques, because it was where I felt safe, psychologically. And even then, I could not be my authentic self unless it was with other Jamaicans.   

University was slightly similar, but I went to a university where the leadership was intentional in creating safe spaces for young women, no matter their nationality, ethnicity, or race. It was the dedication and passion of this leadership, and of so many of my professors, that inspired my friends and me to be purpose‑driven women in society: ones who advocate for the underrepresented, for corporate sustainability, for policy change, for fighting to have mental health destigmatized in the workplace, for the importance of different voices, opinions, and perspectives in board meetings and team meetings across many industries. I loved this place – Trinity Washington University.                                    

My lived experiences have allowed me to help shape this Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Toolkit across Alpha Group of Companies. We are not new to this; however, this is an area of continuous building and learning. We strive to be the gold standard in our services and across the industries we serve, but we also know that “gold standard” is not a destination – it is a practice.                                                                    

It means listening when it’s uncomfortable, revising and applying policies when they don’t reflect lived reality, and creating room for people who have historically been told to shrink themselves to fit in. It means recognizing that DEI is not just about representation, but about power, access, and belonging. It means that when someone from an underrepresented group walks into an Alpha Group space – whether a kitchen, a client site, or a boardroom – they can see themselves in our leadership, our decisions, and our culture.                                                                                                                                               

Yes, I love my home. It will always be my home, but we also have deeper issues that relate to other parts of DEI that can be better and do present challenges for the underrepresented groups that are affected by them. I wish that others, including some of my fellow Jamaicans, could have experienced that feeling of belonging that I did. I haven’t felt that since I left home for a decade. And from my lived experience, this feeling of vulnerability transcends a positive workplace culture. The culture and sense of belonging that Alpha Group of Companies is building is the closest I have come to that feeling again – a place where “Out of Many, One People” is not just a motto on a page, but a daily practice in how we recruit, lead, empower, and support each other.    

Disclaimer: It represents my individual perspective and is not intended to represent the experiences or views of all employees or communities.