Harry and Cleo: a shared connection to college

For Harry (EMBA, 2014) and Cleo Turner (DPhil Medical Sciences, 2025), Green Templeton College is more than a place of study. It is a shared chapter in their father-daughter story. 

A career shaped by the EMBA

When Harry began his Executive MBA, he did not initially feel closely connected to the college. Based primarily at Saïd Business School, he attended a handful of college events but rarely spent extended time here. 

Harry credits his degree with transforming his career trajectory. ‘Both the classes – and more importantly the cohort of the EMBA – gave me the sufficient push and courage to take the giant leap of stepping out of the stable world of full-time employment into the world of being an entrepreneur,’ he said. 

He is co-founder of Talanton, an investment company supporting small and medium-sized enterprises across Africa, with the aim of helping local businesses to create employment and strengthen communities. ‘We have helped create or sustain 109,000 jobs so far, and we have an ambitious goal of one million by the end of 2030.’ 

Today, as an alum living in Australia, Harry feels more connected to college than ever before. He joined the Green Templeton Oceania Alumni Group and has begun attending events. With Cleo now at the college, visits to Oxford have taken on new meaning. 

Making the college her own

Cleo’s decision to study at Green Templeton was entirely her own. Yet walking through the same doors her father once did carries resonance. ‘It’s been incredibly special,’ Harry reflects. ‘Not because she’s following in my footsteps, but because she’s making the place her own.’ 

For Cleo, the college quickly became a space for both professional and personal growth. ‘There was a real shift,’ she says. ‘It was the moment I began to feel like a grown-up – professionally and personally.’ She remembers attending events at Green Templeton as a child with her father. Returning as a DPhil student felt different. Though nervous at first, conversations flowed easily between fellows, students, staff and alumni. The community – small enough to feel personal, yet broad enough to be ambitious – gave her the confidence to take her place in academic and social life.

That sense of belonging has extended beyond Cleo herself. Her spouse, Tom, who is from overseas and unfamiliar with Oxford’s collegiate traditions, quickly felt welcomed. College events were not closed circles but inclusive gatherings, open to partners and families as well as students and alumni. ‘Tom was embraced here,’ notes Julie, Cleo’s mother. 

After registering as an associate member, Tom joined the rowing club and found what Cleo describes as a close-knit community. ‘This is what Green Templeton is known for,’ she says. ‘There’s a real sense of pride. Especially after featuring on University Challenge, the college feels increasingly visible and recognised.’ 

The impact of philanthropic support

As the recipient of the Sir David Weatherall Scholarship, Cleo feels a particularly strong connection to the college. ‘I wouldn’t be here without it,’ she says. ‘Meeting donors has shown me how deeply they care about Green Templeton and the opportunities available to students.’ 

For Harry and Cleo alike, what began as separate periods of study has become a shared narrative – one shaped by community, opportunity and continuity across generations. 

Green Templeton College may be a place of study, but for families like theirs it becomes something more enduring: a bridge between past, present and future.