Alison Fischer
Bachelor's in Politics, Psychology, Law and Economics
Tutor – Beyond Hierarchy and Law, Justice & Morality, and Coordinator – Talent Development Programme
'Like a lot of us working for the PPLE, I can’t think of a better match for my education and previous experience than this program.
I have a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of North Carolina and a doctorate of jurisprudence (law) from Columbia University. I have worked in politics – first as a student activist and later professionally as a grassroots organizer, mobilizing people and lobbying the US government on education policy issues. After becoming a lawyer, I spent several years representing low-income people as a public defender in American criminal courts, a job that required practical psychology both in counseling clients and connecting with juries. Later, I worked for a small law firm and as a legal adviser to the registrar of the Special Court for Sierra Leone, jobs that required business and managerial as well as legal skills.
Moving to the Amsterdam in 2011 gave me the chance to return to education – a field I have always loved. I now live outside of Haarlem with my husband and little boy.
All my jobs have featured a commitment to social justice, but it was my interdisciplinary education that prepared me to pursue that justice in a variety of ways. Whether as a tutor in the classroom or coordinating the Talent Development Program, my new task is to give PPLE students the tools to do the same. I can’t wait to get started.'