Office of the President
CT State Community College is poised and ready to become a premier comprehensive statewide community college serving over 60,000 students annually and focused on building upon the history of Connecticut’s 12 legacy community colleges.
Dr. O. John Maduko is the inaugural President of Connecticut State Community College, leading what will commence in July of 2023 as Connecticut’s largest institution of higher education, the largest community college in New England, and the primary driver of access and post-graduate success for more than 60,000 students across multiple campuses and training facilities throughout Connecticut.
From the Desk of the President
May 31, 2023
Dear Colleagues and Friends,
The end of the spring semester and the beginning of summer is always a time of excitement and change. Let me get right to updating you on a series of news items across CT State.
I am pleased to announce that I have selected Kim Hogan as the permanent CEO of Middlesex Community College. Ms. Hogan has served as interim CEO since April 2022 and prior to that was its Dean of Administration. Her commitment to the campus and Middlesex community is unmatched. I will share a more detailed congratulatory announcement separately.
Next, today we say “See You Soon” (not good-bye) to Dr. Dwayne Smith on his last day as CEO of Housatonic Community College. Tomorrow, he begins as the interim President of Southern Connecticut State University. We wish him nothing but the best and we know that he will continue to be a strong partner and champion for our scholars.
Dr. William “Terry” Brown shared with his campus community earlier today that he will be stepping down as Gateway’s CEO to accept a position as part of the Strategic Partnership & Enterprise Performance division serving all of CT State Community College. This division is under Executive Vice President Dr. Thomas Coley and includes grant administration and development, institutional effectiveness and strategic partnerships around advancement, business and industry, and P-20 initiatives that support collaboration between college-level academics, K-12 and workforce training.
In the interim, I have tapped Dr. Scott Kalicki to step in at Gateway. Dr. Kalicki previously served as interim CEO at Manchester Community College, and currently serves as the interim Vice President of Campus Operations for CT State. He will provide leadership and stability while the search for a permanent CEO takes place.
Both the Gateway and Housatonic permanent CEO searches will commence in the Fall 2023 semester. I will announce my selection of the interim Housatonic CEO once final internal candidate interviews are completed.
Other important updates:
- We anticipate that we will successfully close out the 2022-2023 academic year this summer in time for the US Department of Education to complete our transition to one college in time for Fall 2023 with minimal disruption to student financial aid.
- Our final report to NECHE will be filed tomorrow, June 1 and will be posted at: https://www.ct.edu/merger/neche. The September 2022 and February 2023 reports and our Substantive Change Report are also viewable here. President Terrence Cheng and I, and CT State executive leadership will meet in person with NECHE leadership in mid-June.
- Budget Town Halls have taken place at 10 campuses so far. These have been extremely beneficial for me to connect directly with faculty and staff on our budget deficit mitigation efforts, and also to continue to gain insight into campus priorities that directly impact my decision-making.
Finally, as I mentioned in my May 1 President’s Post, we have instituted a modified hiring process that will be in place until it is determined where we land with the FY24 budget. In the meantime, the current process to review and approve positions that are ready to fill AND fall within priority areas listed has been expanded to include part-time and temporary personnel requests, including non-credit lecturers, across the college. That was followed by specific guidance documents available here: https://www.ct.edu/hr/forms#hiring . New and modified guidance continues to be developed.
Personnel requests will continue to be reviewed and signed-off on by the campus CEOs/Presidents or CT State Vice President before they reach final approval. Therefore, critical vacancies and hires will be identified and prioritized. Requests to Fill (RTF) positions are considered on a weekly basis.
As a reminder, these are our priority areas:
- Teaching and Learning
- Student Support Services
- Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Commitments
- Campus and Public Safety
- Physical Plant and Technological Infrastructure
Sincerely,
John Maduko, M.D. (he/him/his)
President
Connecticut State Community College
Contact the President's Office
185 Main Street
New Britain, CT 06051
Dr. John Maduko
President, CT State Community College
860-612-7005
CTState-President@ct.edu or darroyo@commnet.edu
Dennisse Arroyo
Executive Assistant to the President
860-612-7011 | darroyo@commnet.edu
To request Dr. Maduko’s event attendance or for a speaking request, contact Dennisse Arroyo.
Theresa Robbins
Executive Assistant to the CT State Central Office
860-612-7005 | trobbins@commnet.edu
Ann Harrison
Chief of Staff and Associate Vice President for Communication and Strategic Marketing
860-612-7025 | aharrison@commnet.edu
Media inquiries should be addressed to Ann Harrison.
Our Mission
Connecticut State Community College provides access to academically rigorous and innovative education and training focused on student success. The college supports excellence in teaching and learning, makes data-informed decisions, promotes equity, and advances positive change for the students, communities and industries it serves.
Our Vision
CT State will be recognized for exceptional student success, educational leadership and transformative collaboration with business and industry, government, educational and key stakeholders while advancing diverse opportunities for Connecticut’s citizens and communities.
Spring 2023
President Maduko attended the 2023 Visions in Leadership program at Quinebaug Valley Community College welcomed guest speaker Carlos Alvarado Quesada, the forty-eighth President of the Republic of Costa Rica, during the event on Wednesday, March 29.
President Maduko engaged with elected officials, alumni, faculty, staff, and supporters at Naugatuck Valley Community College 2023 Legislative Breakfast. Many thanks to: Rep. Seth Bronko, Senator Joan Hartley, Rep. Cindy Harrison, Rep. John Piscopo, Rep. William Pizzuto, and Rep. Geraldo Reyes Jr for allowing our students and leaders to share the success stories of our students while also speaking to our needs.
People from the Tunxis Community and President Maduko and met with State Representative Francis Rexford Cooley, State Representative Eleni Kavros DeGraw, and State Representative Kate Farrar this morning to share news and updates on the college’s commitment to student success and its communities.
Local and State legislators joined MxCC Interim CEO Kimberly Hogan and President John Maduko, M.D., along with the MxCC community, to listen to student experiences along with their needs for the future.
President Maduko and other members of CT State’s leadership team were in Washington, D.C., the week of February 9 to advocate for community colleges in Connecticut and across the country.
President Maduko welcomed the new chief of police at the swearing in ceremony of Chief Chris Chute as CT State Inaugural Chief of Police.
| CT State Community College joined with Capital today for a ribbon-cutting to celebrate its Hartford Talent Hub and paid apprenticeship program with Accenture. The program will expand access to training for in-demand coding and technology jobs and help create a pipeline of skilled workers for Connecticut employers. |
On April 6, President Maduko joined Connecticut’s U.S. Representative Joe Courtney as they visited Asnuntuck to meet with the community volunteers at the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance site at ACC to highlight the VITA program and raise awareness of the Earned Income Tax Credit.
President Maduko traveled to the American Association of Community Colleges Annual conference in Denver to to meet with colleagues from all over the country sharing ideas and inspiration for transformational and equitable outcomes for all students.
CT State Community College leadership, including President Maduko, joined U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal on February 10 at Capital Community College to support the passage of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act, which would enable students to use federal Pell Grants to access short-term workforce training in career programs for high-demand jobs such as health care and help Connecticut fill thousands of open positions.
President Maduko at the first of 12 legislative breakfasts that were hosted across CT started at Gateway Community College in New Haven. Pres Maduko was happy to welcome Rep. Robyn Porter shown here with Gateway CEO William “Terry” Brown. Sen. Martin Looney and Rep. Tony Walker also attended.