Orville Taylor, PhD
Award-winning columnist, author, educator, and radio talk-show host are just few of the titles held by Orville Winthorp Taylor. His journey to fame began in Waterhouse, an inner-city community in Kingston where his parents instilled in him a love for education. He attended St. Patrick's Primary School where he excelled in academics and passed the Common Entrance Examination which earned him a place in one of Jamaica's top high schools: St. George's College. Throughout the years, his love of black clothing has earned him the nickname 'Man in Black'. He is also referred to as 'Miss Ivy's last bwoy' for being the last of his mother's sons.
Dr. Taylor is currently the Head of the Department of Sociology, Psychology and Social Work, Faculty of Social Sciences, the University of the West Indies, Mona. He is also Senior Lecturer in Sociology at UWI, Mona, and the first PhD in Sociology from Florida International University. A nationally exhibited and awarded artist, Dr Taylor is a provocative Jamaican media personality, who writes a weekly column in Jamaica's Sunday Gleaner and used to write for the Black-Oriented British Newspaper, The Voice. He is a member of the American Association of Black Sociologists, and has written several articles and book chapters on the subject of race, the African Diaspora and labour studies, and has presented more than 50 conference papers in both Spanish and English. As an external collaborator with the International Labour Organization (ILO), and former Senior Director of Industrial Relations in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security in Jamaica, he is a specialist in international labour standards and has produced several country and regional reports.
Once listed as one of Jamaica's most eligible bachelors, Dr. Taylor is now married and has a daughter.
Awards and Honours
- UWI Best Publication Award 2016
- Morris Cargill Award for Opinion Journalism (2014)
- UWI Best Publication Award 2004
- St. Patrick's Primary School honoured Dr. Taylor by renaming its Yellow Team 'Taylor House'.
Education
- Doctor in Philosophy- Florida International University
- Master of Science- University of the West Indies
- Bachelor of Arts- University of the West Indies
- St. George's College
Employment
- Head, Department of Sociology, Psychology and Social Work
- Senior Lecturer: Sociology, Psych & Social Work: Faculty of Social Sciences, University of the West Indies, Mona.
- Radio Talk-Show Host on Radio Jamaica (RJR 94FM)
- Contributor- Jamaica Gleaner
- Ministry of Labour and Social Security