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Sonita Alleyne

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Sonita Alleyne
OBE FRSA
42nd Master of Jesus College, Cambridge
Incumbent
Assumed office
1 October 2019
Preceded byIan H. White
Personal details
Born1968 (age 55–56)
Bridgetown, Barbados
RelationsJade Alleyne (niece)
Alma materFitzwilliam College, Cambridge (BA)

Sonita Alleyne, OBE, FRSA (born 1968)[1] is the Barbados-born British co-founder and former CEO of Somethin’ Else, a cross-platform media production company. Alleyne is a member of the BBC Trust, the governing body of the British Broadcasting Corporation, and in 2019 was elected Master of Jesus College, Cambridge, becoming the first woman to hold the post since the founding of the college in 1496,[2] as well as the first black leader of an Oxbridge college.[3]

Early life, education and early career

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Alleyne was born in Bridgetown, Barbados. At the age of three, she moved with her parents to Walthamstow, England, and later attended the nearby Leyton Manor School and Leyton Senior High School.[4] She graduated from Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge (1985–88), with a BA degree in Philosophy,[5][6] and began working as a financial adviser for Royal Life. A year later, she joined Jazz FM's publicity department and, in her two years at the station, proceeded to become a trainee producer.[7]

Career

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In 1991, Alleyne set up Somethin' Else, a music publicity business (named after the jazz album by Cannonball Adderley), with former colleagues Jez Nelson and Chris Philips. The company produced original content for the BBC and commercial radio. As CEO, Alleyne led many projects herself, including the development of Radio Music Shop, the world's first retail radio station.[8] By 2008, Somethin’ Else was, according to The Independent, "the biggest syndicator of radio programmes in the UK, outside of the BBC, distributing shows to more than 200 radio stations in 65 countries".[9]

In October 2009, Alleyne stepped down as chief executive and continued as a non-executive director. Her co-founder Jez Nelson succeeded her as CEO.[10]

Since 2008, Alleyne has chaired the national arts charity Sound and Music[11] and the Radio Sector Skills Council.[12] She is a member of the Court of Governors at the University of the Arts London and a trustee of the Islington Arts and Media Trust.[13] She sits on the UK Culture Committee for UNESCO and contributes to the Government Department for Work and Pensions as a member of the London Skills and Employment Board and the National Employment Panel.[14] She has been a judge for the Precious Awards, which celebrate the entrepreneurial achievements of black women,[15] and the Sony Awards.[16]

In February 2012, she was appointed as a non-executive director of Archant, a media group.[17] In July 2012, the Government announced that Alleyne would join the BBC Trust, the governing body of the Corporation.[18]

Alleyne has been a board member of the London Legacy Development Corporation since April 2012.[19] In 2019, she was appointed Chair of the British Board of Film Classification.[20]

In May 2019, she was elected Master of Jesus College, Cambridge, taking up the post in October 2019.[21] She is the first woman to hold the role, 40 years after the college began admitting women as undergraduates.[22] Alleyne praised the work of the Jesus College working party on the legacies of slavery (LSWP),[23] whose work relating to the courtier Tobias Rustat, memorialised in the chapel, has been criticised by Charles Moore in The Spectator.[24]

October 2019 also saw Alleyne's influence recognised, with her inclusion in the 2020 Powerlist, an annual publication listing the 100 most influential Black Britons.[25] Her inclusion remained for the 2021 edition of the powerlist, in recognition of her work in the education sector.[26]

Awards and recognition

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In 2000, Alleyne received the Award of Excellence from the European Federation of Black Women Business Owners.[27] In 2002, she won the Carlton Multicultural Achievement Award for TV and Radio.[27] She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts and the Radio Academy.[27] In 2004, she was awarded the OBE for services to broadcasting.[17]

References

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  1. ^ Coleman, Zak (25 October 2019). "Sonita Alleyne, the first Black woman to lead an Oxbridge college, wants to bring Jesus into 2019". Varsity. Cambridge.
  2. ^ Motune, Vic (7 November 2019). "Sonita Alleyne – the first ever black Master of an Oxbridge College". The Voice.
  3. ^ Davies, Caroline (26 May 2019). "Sonita Alleyne to be first black leader of an Oxbridge college". The Guardian.
  4. ^ "Barbadian lady first black Head at Cambridge University". Barbados Today. 7 June 2019. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
  5. ^ Thackray, Rachelle (22 September 1999). "Me And My Partner: Jez Nelson and Sonita Alleyne". independent.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 13 March 2019.
  6. ^ "Fitz alumna Sonita Alleyne named Jesus College Master", Fitawilliam College, University of Cambridge, 28 May 2019.
  7. ^ "An' all that jazz" (PDF). Optima (p. 7). 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 October 2011. Retrieved 9 December 2011.
  8. ^ "WRN behind Radio Music Shop". Radio Today. December 2006. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
  9. ^ Morris, Sophie (28 January 2008). "Sonita Alleyne: My Life in Media". The Independent. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 9 December 2011.
  10. ^ Shepherd, Robert (16 October 2009). "Nelson replaces Alleyne as Somethin' Else CEO". www.broadcast.co.uk. Retrieved 9 December 2011.
  11. ^ "Board of Directors". culturalcapitalfund.co.uk. Retrieved 13 March 2019.
  12. ^ "Sonita Alleyne". cloreleadership.org. Retrieved 13 March 2019.
  13. ^ "Governors Who's Who: Sonita Alleyne OBE". University of the Arts London. 2011. Archived from the original on 6 April 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2011.
  14. ^ "Members: Sonita Alleyne OBE". London Skills and Employment Board. 2008. Archived from the original on 19 December 2008. Retrieved 9 December 2011.
  15. ^ "The PRECIOUS Awards 2010 Judges". The Precious Awards. 2010. Archived from the original on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2011.
  16. ^ "Indie Radio Founder Gets OBE". www.tourdates.co.uk. 2009. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 9 December 2011.
  17. ^ a b "Archant names Sonita Alleyne as a non-executive director". eadt.co.uk. 8 February 2012. Retrieved 13 March 2019.
  18. ^ BBC Trust (11 July 2012). "Aideen McGinley appointed BBC Trustee for Northern Ireland and Sonita Alleyne appointed BBC Trustee". Retrieved 23 December 2012.
  19. ^ "Board of the London Legacy Development Corporation appointed". london.gov.uk. 30 March 2012. Retrieved 13 March 2019.
  20. ^ "Sonita Alleyne, OBE, FRSA". competitions.malcolmreading.co.uk. Retrieved 13 March 2019.
  21. ^ Press Association (26 May 2019). "Sonita Alleyne to be first black leader of an Oxbridge college". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 26 May 2019 – via www.theguardian.com.
  22. ^ "Sonita Alleyne OBE elected as new Master". Jesus College, Cambridge. 26 May 2019. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
  23. ^ Khomami, Nadia (2021). "Cambridge college to be first in UK to return a looted Benin bronze, which the college has received as a gift from a benefactor". The Guardian. No. 15 October 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  24. ^ Moore, Charles (29 January 2021). "Will Samuel Pepys be cancelled next?". The Spectator. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  25. ^ Mills, Kelly-Ann (25 October 2019). "Raheem Sterling joins Meghan and Stormzy in top 100 most influential black Brits". mirror. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  26. ^ Lavender, Jane (17 November 2020). "Lewis Hamilton ends incredible year top of influential Black Powerlist 2021". mirror. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  27. ^ a b c "Award-Winning Businesswoman Appointed To BBC Trust". voice-online.co.uk. 19 July 2012. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
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Academic offices
Preceded by Master of Jesus College, Cambridge
2019 to present 		Incumbent
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