Daisy Cocco De Filippis, Ph.D., attended President Barack Obama’s State of the Union speech as guest of Congresswoman Elizabeth H. Esty (CT-5).  On Tuesday, January 20, 2015, Dr. De Filippis accompanied the 5th District Congresswoman to Washington as an advocate for community colleges. Esty cited a long and fruitful working relationship with the President of NVCC and made a special note of how Dr. De Filippis has made a difference by transforming how NVCC partners with the communities we serve.

“During my time in Congress, I’ve enjoyed working with Dr. De Filippis and the NVCC community on a wide range of events, including hosting a computer programming workshop for high school students, addressing a showcase of local manufacturers, and participating in a STEM expo for 8th grade girls. I’m proud that Dr. De Filippis will join me at the State of the Union address as we renew our efforts to expand access to affordable college education, improve skills training for American workers, and revitalize our economy to create good-paying jobs right here in Connecticut,” Esty said.

President De Filippis expressed great enthusiasm and personal pride at the prospect of joining Congresswoman Esty for this momentous occasion. “I am honored to have been invited to be Congresswoman Elizabeth Esty’s guest at President Obama’s State of the Union address. Community colleges are quintessentially American democratic engines of change because we provide life-transforming opportunities for some of our most vulnerable citizens. I am particularly grateful for the recognition given to the important work of community colleges in Connecticut and in the United States. Public higher education provided me with opportunities I never dreamed I would have. It is in the spirit of gratitude and of giving back that I come to our beautiful Naugatuck Valley Community College each and every day,” she said.

A Dominican Republic native, President De Filippis was born in Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic and became a U.S. citizen after moving to the United States when she was 13 years old. Dr. De Filippis is the first Dominican president of a community college in the United States, and she is one of a small but growing number of Latina presidents across the country.

As Congress heads into the new year, Congresswoman Esty and Dr. De Filippis will call attention to the important role community colleges play in providing high-quality education and technical training programs to prepare students for jobs in high-demand sectors—without forcing students to take on years of student loan debt.