Flavia Colgan
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Flavia Monteiro Colgan is a Democratic strategist, who is an active political contributor on MSNBC and serves as a special correspondent for Extra.
Her mother, Maria, is Brazilian and her father, Kevin, is Irish American. They divorced two years after her birth. Shortly thereafter, Colgan's mother wed William T. Coleman III, a partner at the law firm of Pepper, Hamilton & Scheetz and son of William Thaddeus Coleman, Jr. (former Secretary of Transportation under President Gerald Ford, the second African American to hold a cabinet post, and winner of a 1995 Presidential Medal of Freedom). They moved from Philadelphia to Detroit. Later, Coleman would become General Counsel to the United States Army when his law school roommate, Bill Clinton, was elected president. She is the niece of Lovida Coleman Jr., Former Justice Dept. lawyer and Deputy Independent council who currently serves on the board of RAND.
Colgan's father taught in the School District of Philadelphia. Every weekend she flew from Detroit to Philadelphia to be with him. At age 11, Colgan's mother moved to the Dominican Republic where they lived in Santo Domingo.
Returning to Detroit when she was 13, she attended four different high schools. She spent her tenth grade year in Fairfield, Iowa, while her father attended graduate school. Colgan returned to school in Michigan for her junior year at The Roeper School and completed high school at The Shipley School, a private school in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.
Admitted to Harvard, she graduated with honors in 1999, earning a degree in Comparative Religion. She returned to Philadelphia, interning under federal Judge Louis Pollak.
Prior to joining MSNBC and Fox News, Colgan was a Democratic Party fundraiser and political consultant. Later she served as campaign manager for both David Wecht for Pennsylvania's Superior Court, and Catherine Baker Knoll for state treasurer. She was the first ever woman and youngest Chief of Staff to Pennsylvania's Lt. Governor and served on Governor Ed Rendell's Senior Staff.
Flavia is a frequent guest and guest host on local and national talk radio including:
- Michael Smerconish
- The Air America Radio show The Young Turks
- NPR's "The Point"
- The Alan Colmes Show
She has also served as cohost of a public affairs radio program in the Philadelphia area.
Flavia is an editorial board member and columnist for the Philadelphia Daily News and a regular contributor to the The Huffington Post, Politics PA and The Morning Call of Allentown, Pennsylvania. Her work has also appeared in In These Times, Common Dreams, and The Patriot-News of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
In addition, Flavia serves on the board or committees for the following charities and non-profit groups:
- Boys and Girls Clubs of America
- Best Buddies
- Big Picture Alliance
- Children Uniting Nations
- Global Green USA
- Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation
- The Jackie Robinson Foundation
In late March 2006, in conjunction with the Philadelphia Daily News, Colgan launched Citizen Hunter, a website steeped in social and political action, as well as community involvement.
Some of her recent television appearances include The O'Reilly Factor, The Montel Williams Show, Larry King Live and Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith.
Colgan's recent endeavour includes "Miracle Quest" a program on the Travel Channel. Miracle Quest will take Colgan to Europe where she will examine the stigmata of Padre Pio, the healing waters of Lourdes and the miracle of San Gennaro as she interviews locals, churchmen, believers and skeptics.
In May of 2008 Colgan became a new contributor with the CBS Early Show doing profiles on average people making a difference in the world.
