Tell us about your college experience and career trajectory.

I majored in Anthropology and International Studies with a concentration in Economics at Bryn Mawr College. After graduating, I received a Fulbright grant and spent a year in Indonesia teaching English at a religious high school. Shortly after returning to the US, I earned a M.A. degree from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University and have spent nearly 15 years supporting U.S. foreign assistance programs in Central America, Africa, and Asia.

Over the course of my career, I have been really fortunate to work in all sorts of different technical and geographic areas. In Myanmar, I worked on a humanitarian project providing grants to organizations working in disaster preparedness and response; in the Philippines, I worked on an economic growth project that provided credit guarantees to local financial institutions lending to small and medium enterprises; and most recently I have worked on a global public health project where we partner with host country governments to procure lifesaving medicines to combat HIV/AIDs, malaria, Ebola, COVID-19, zika, malnutrition, and maternal mortality. 

Looking back, Waynflete influenced my career path in many ways. In high school, I volunteered with Safe Passage, an NGO founded by Hanley Denning, a fellow Mainer. I travelled to Guatemala City to volunteer for two weeks as part of a group of Waynflete students, parents, and teachers. While I didn’t know about the field of international development at the time, the experience opened my eyes to finding a career path that was meaningful and impactful.  

As a much younger student, I always loved Focus Week because it gave you the chance to explore another country or culture and learn about their food, music, language, and customs. I’m sure that influenced me on some level to study Anthropology and then go on to live and work abroad. 

What are you passionate about? What inspires you and motivates you?

I’ve always loved learning other languages and travel, so my college pathway and career trajectory were really borne out of that. I also try to carve out time for hobbies and interests outside of work. For fun, I love playing tennis and taking pottery classes. 

What do you love most about what you do? 

U.S. foreign assistance improves lives abroad, but it also impacts Americans at home. Much of what I do in my job now focuses on preventing the spread of communicable diseases to stop them from reaching U.S. shores. The recent COVID-19 pandemic underscored the fact that diseases aren’t confined within geographical borders and can spread faster than at any other time in history given the scale and speed of air travel.  

I feel lucky to have visited some amazing places that I never would have experienced on my own. I also really love working alongside extremely smart, hard-working, and dedicated colleagues from all over the world who share a common purpose and values.

Tell us about your college experience and career trajectory.

I went to Bentley University, which is a business-focused school, and majored in economics. I chose economics largely because I was at Waynflete during the 2008 financial crisis. Watching the global economy collapse made me want to understand how money moves, why systems fail, and who gets impacted. My curiosity solidified when I took the Business and Finance class with Steve Kautz my junior year.

Waynflete prepared me academically in a way I didn’t fully appreciate until I got to college. The expectations around writing, discussions, and critical thinking were already high, so the transition to college-level work was not overwhelming at all. Additionally Waynflete’s small class sizes meant you had to participate, defend ideas, and be able to explain your thinking clearly. This is a skill I use so often in my career.

I’ve held various roles in IT over the past ten years, from analyst to software engineer, and everything in between. I am now a product owner at CACI in the DC Metro supporting federal government clients. 

What do you love most about what you do? 

I like solving problems. I like taking something complicated and making it clearer, easier, faster, and more efficient for the people who use it every day.

A lot of what I do makes our government more efficient. When you improve those systems even in small ways, you’re improving something that impacts a lot of people.

I get to sit in rooms with senior stakeholders, listen to what they’re trying to achieve, and then turn that into something engineers can actually build. I enjoy being the person who can speak both languages. I also love the variety in my work. The problems are never the same for long. Every project forces me to learn a new process, a new business area, or a new technology.

What advice would you give seniors who are trying to figure out what’s next for them? 

You don’t have to know exactly what you want to do yet. What matters is choosing a path that gives you options. When you get to college, use your first year to try different subjects instead of locking into a major immediately, and get your general requirements out of the way early so you can change direction later if something else ends up being a better fit. Lastly, if you have the chance to study abroad, take it. Being in another country, even for one semester, can completely change how you see your future in a way that a classroom can’t.

In this brief interview, Alex Saadé ’19 shares his journey after Waynflete, including his academic success at Cornell University and his impactful work in strategy consulting. Alex also reflects on his experience as a Malone scholar at Waynflete and how this prepared him for his professional pursuits and motivated him to give back.

Can you tell us about your college experience? What did you major in? How did Waynflete prepare you/impact your career?
“I went to Cornell University where I majored in Political Science and French. The skills I built at Waynflete allowed me to hit the ground running in college. I found my writing, speaking, and critical-thinking abilities to be on par with my professors’ expectations and felt prepared to participate at a high level in class discussions, an important component of any liberal arts education. Waynflete also showed me that I could hold my own among incredibly smart, driven people. That sense of confidence followed me to Cornell and played a big role in my success there.

When it came time for my job search, I found so many components of my Waynflete experience applicable. Asking good questions, building relationships, and demonstrating problem-solving abilities are all central skills in today’s job market and central to Waynflete’s pedagogy. In a world where AI/computing advances will increasingly place a premium on human creativity and dynamism, Waynflete’s focus on developing creative and critical thinkers will be of tremendous value to students and the communities they come to impact.” 

What are you passionate about? What inspires you and motivates you?
“My greatest passions lie in education and business innovation. 

After graduating from Cornell, I was an assistant teacher in a Boston public school through City Year, a national public service non-profit. This experience was transformative and opened my eyes to the power of positive learning experiences both in and out of the classroom. I now lead an initiative at Deloitte that leverages the game of chess as a vehicle for mentorship. Built around a peer-mentor learning curriculum, the initiative aims to create risk-free environments where middle school students at a Boston public school can learn and master the rules of chess and, in so doing, gain confidence in learning broadly. 

In recognition of my contributions to the Boston community through my work at City Year and Deloitte, I was recently awarded the “Corporate Youth Leadership” Excellence in Mentoring Award by MENTOR, a non-profit dedicated to advancing mentorship initiatives across public, private, and nonprofit sectors. 

At Deloitte, I have helped to develop go-to-market, customer, growth, loyalty, and merger strategies for industry-leading technology, retail/consumer product, and travel and hospitality clients. Working in strategy has exposed me to the challenges businesses often face in taking innovative approaches to problem-solving. It also motivated me to focus my career in realizing innovation—whether through entrepreneurship, within organizations, or in my local community, leading bold, reasoned, creative, and practical solutions to better lives is my magnum opus.”

Why does what you do matter?
“I help organizations think differently about the challenges they face and pursue innovative ways to grow their businesses. I find my work meaningful because I can directly impact the creation of new opportunities and experiences for real people. I also find meaning in my work because of how difficult it often is—being able to focus my time on tackling difficult challenges brings me purpose.”

What do you love most about what you do?
“That I get to meet new, interesting people every day; build and communicate bold ideas; and create change that I believe in.” 

Waynflete’s designation as a Malone Scholar School provides a permanent endowment to support need-based scholarships for grades 7–12 students who demonstrate outstanding academic and leadership potential. How did being a Malone scholar change your life?
“The four years I spent at Waynflete were some of my most transformative: the Malone Scholarship made that possible for me. From discovering the beauty of Maine through Outdoor Experience to forming lifelong friendships and being challenged by inspiring teachers and coaches to think creatively, learn deeply, and explore a wide range of subjects and activities, every part of my Waynflete journey helped shape who I am today. It gave me the confidence to step into new environments, face challenges with curiosity, and pursue opportunities I might never have imagined for myself.

The generosity of the Malone scholarship unlocked tremendous opportunities for me that I am committed to re-creating for others.” 

How did Waynflete help get you where you are today?
“I owe so much of what I gained at Waynflete to the people I was lucky to call my teachers, coaches, and friends. 

My teachers gave me confidence as a thinker and communicator.

My coaches encouraged me to explore my strengths as a leader.

My friends inspired me to show up as my full self in everything I do.

Throughout my time at Waynflete, I was entrusted with leadership roles, asked to represent teams, and empowered to collaborate with my peers to create new opportunities for social impact.

From these early experiences in leadership, bringing new ideas to life, and building collaborative environments, I developed an interest in entrepreneurial thinking that continues to drive the decisions I make. Because of Waynflete, I find myself always looking for ways to make an impact, always looking to go where the problems are hard, and always looking for ways to bring others with me.” 

What would you say to donors who support financial aid at Waynflete?
“I credit many of my early career accomplishments to the foundation I built at Waynflete. By making that experience possible for students like me, donors set in motion a ripple effect that extends far beyond the scholarship recipient. To be in a place that was so invested in seeing me succeed not only gave me the confidence to dream, it taught me to invest in others in the same way. The premise of a philanthropic gift is to create as much good as a dollar can—inspiring a generation of leaders invested in lifting up those around them is as good a “good” as I can think of.”

Congratulations to Khalil Kilani ’21 on receiving the prestigious Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Graduate Fellowship! This distinguished award will fund two years of Khalil’s graduate education and provide internships on Capitol Hill and at a U.S. embassy or consulate. After completing the fellowship, Khalil will earn an appointment at the State Department.

Born in Jordan to Iraqi parents and later resettled in Portland, Khalil now studies computer science and government at Bowdoin College. Over the years, Khalil has continued to demonstrate his leadership skills and a remarkable commitment to community through engaging in student government and global citizenship initiatives as well as serving as an alumni ambassador for The Telling Room. He has worked as a McKeen Center Global Citizens Fellow in Peru and participated in the selective U.S. Foreign Service Internship Program with the State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration.

“I am proud to be an American by choice—this nation welcomed me at my most vulnerable moment, ensuring I could live a childhood where birds dotted the sky instead of bombs and bullets,” Khalil wrote in his fellowship application.

Waynflete is pleased to announce that Dale MacLachlan Lewis P’11, ’16, ’16 is the recipient of the 2025 Drake Award, a special honor for service to Waynflete.

When Dale MacLachlan Lewis and her husband, Rich, enrolled their daughter in Waynflete’s Early Childhood program in 1997, they began what would become a 19-year journey as Waynflete parents. A committed volunteer from the start, Dale brought creativity and a quiet steadiness to everything from class activities and book fairs to Spring Fling, the Arts Committee, and The Waynflete Fund. She was a founder of Monday Books, a treasured program that, for more than 15 years, invited parents to gather with faculty to discuss literature in community. She led the group for ten years, creating a space that reflected the school’s values of curiosity and lifelong learning. 

In 2013, Dale joined Waynflete’s Board of Trustees, deepening her commitment to the school she had already served in so many ways. She always showed up fully—with generosity, thoughtfulness, and care. Her election as a Trustee Emerita at the end of her last term marked 25 years at Waynflete.

Dale’s service has always been grounded in respect for the work of the faculty and staff, and an abiding belief in Waynflete’s mission. Her background in human resources and the social sciences, her training as an artist and designer, and her warmth as a parent and community builder all informed her approach. Her willingness to pitch in, wherever needed, set an example for others.

Waynflete is pleased to announce that Margo Walsh ’82 is the recipient of the 2025 Klingenstein Alumni Award, an honor that is rooted in our mission and calls for responsible and caring participation in the world. Through the Klingenstein Award, we seek to recognize one Waynflete alumnus/alumna per year whose work at the local, national, or international level has had broad and positive ramifications.

Margo Walsh ’82 has spent her life bringing people together—and giving them another chance. A former corporate recruiter turned social entrepreneur, Margo is the founder of MaineWorks, a social staffing agency with a mission: to dignify employment for individuals returning from jail or prison, and for those in recovery from substance use disorder.

Launched in 2011, MaineWorks was born from Margo’s own experience with recovery and her deep sense of empathy for people living on the margins. Her approach has always been unconventional, intentionally challenging the transactional nature of traditional day-labor staffing models. Unlike agencies that rely on short-term, daily arrangements, MaineWorks hires its employees and provides them with structure, benefits, and the dignity of stability.

Employment was only part of the solution. In 2017, Margo co-founded United Recovery Fund with her sister, Elaine Walsh Carney ’88, to offer practical solutions to obstacles to employment, including rent assistance, transportation, work gear, mobile phones, and access to dental and mental healthcare services. Together, the two organizations form a rare ecosystem of support that bridges the gap between hopelessness and possibility. That ecosystem expanded in 2024 with the creation of Cecil’s Place Sober Living, which offers safe and secure housing for the MaineWorks workforce.

MaineWorks has grown into a widely recognized model of what social enterprise can be. It was the first Maine company to be certified as a B Corporation (a designation for organizations that meet high standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency) and has received numerous accolades, including Small Business of the Year and multiple Best for the World honors from B Lab for its work with underserved populations. Margo also consults with government agencies and organizations interested in replicating the MaineWorks model in other communities. In 2025, Margo was invited to present a TED Talk on the importance of work for marginalized people.

Margo’s vision has always been shaped by a deep sense of social responsibility and an unwavering belief in human potential. She traces some of those early influences to her time at Waynflete, where an outside-the-box learning environment and a values-driven mission gave her the confidence to pursue meaningful change on her own terms.