Deborah Fletcher holds a Masters of Public Administration with a focus on Global e-Policy and e-Governance, a Masters of Science in Sociology and a Bachelors of Science in Social Policy and Development. Prior to joining the UGHE, she worked in planning and institutional research with The University of the West Indies, Jamaica, and in community development with the Social Development Commission of Jamaica. She has many years of experience in planning related to governance and capacity building in support of higher education administration.   At the university level, she played an instrumental role in conducting institutional research and worked with the quality assurance team. While in community development, she developed a number of projects to address the needs of low income, semi-urban and inner-city communities, building partnerships with a range of organisations and stakeholders on implementation.  Her research interests span the fields of gender studies, access to information and communication technology, tourism and development and employment conditions, with attendance at several research conferences and publications in these areas.