Charlene “Charly” van Dijk (CLAS ‘08) is a senior adviser on the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's Community and Economic Development team, based out of the Miami Branch. Her focus is on community development finance, place-based initiatives, capacity building, small business and microfinance, and Community Reinvestment Act implementation. She works across the six states in the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s District including Florida, Georgia, Alabama, and parts of Tennessee, Mississippi, and Louisiana. Previously, while working at the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, she collaborated with Reserve Banks to strengthen their community development strategies, research, and programs across the country, and she supported the Board’s participation in the Central Bank Network for Indigenous Inclusion and the Financial Stability Board. Before that, van Dijk held positions at the US Department of the Treasury's Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund and the US Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship; A2F Consulting; and the Latino Economic Development Center.

Reflecting upon her experience at CLAS she said, “My time was condensed as a one joint year master’s student through a partnership with Mount Holyoke, my alma mater. That one year, however, shaped me in immeasurable ways—professionally, academically, and personally. My political economy concentration (shout out to Robin King, Barbara Kotschwar, and Luis Jacome) exposed me to macroeconomic and monetary policy concepts that resonate with me every day in my role at the Atlanta Fed (part of the U.S. central bank) as I strive to ensure that the American economy works for everyone. I have lifelong friendships with wonderful, brilliant humans from all over the world who I met at Georgetown, and I can always tap into the Hoya network whenever I need to make a connection in a new city or field.”