More than 100 community partners and NVCC academic leaders met at a leadership breakfast held at Naugatuck Valley Community College’s Waterbury campus today. The annual Leadership Breakfast “Responding to Our Mission” reflected the individual and shared goals of legislative, municipal, and community leaders in the 22-town NVCC service region. Each year, the event invites community participants to focus on common interests and plan for the coming year, particularly for the 2017 session of the state’s General Assembly. The agenda for this year’s meeting included:
 

• NVCC President Daisy Cocco De Filippis, Ph.D., and Connecticut State Colleges & Universities (CCSU) and President Mark E. Ojakian welcomed attendees and each commented on the state of the college and the system. President Ojakian then spoke about his on-going commitment to supporting diversity in the CCSU system. President De Filippis reflected on the importance higher education plays in upward mobility and access to good-paying jobs. 

• Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton and Waterbury Mayor Neil O’Leary highlighted plans to launch an Economic Development Partnership to create growth opportunities for both cities and towns in between. Mayor Boughton emphasized the importance of collaboration between cities and towns for economic development. Mayor O’Leary talked about the critical mission the City has to “educate our children. Education is it—period end of story,” he said.

• Justin West, a digital arts major at NVCC, shared an endearing story of personal triumph and the role that the College played in his transition back to higher education. 

• Ingrid Alvarez-DiMarzo, Connecticut State Director of the Hispanic Federation and Marcy Macdonald, Vice President, Human Resources at Memry Corporation addressed community change and manufacturing jobs.

• The meeting included discussion with state legislators and municipal government leaders about the important role of higher education in improving the lives of individuals and providing them the necessary training for success in the state’s evolving job market.

• President De Filippis also announced the new Founders Hall Center for Health Sciences building at NVCC’s Waterbury campus will be open in time for the start of the spring semester when classes begin on January 19. 

The annual event was the last one of its kind held in Technology Hall as the college is optimistically anticipating its move to Founder’s Hall where the new community space will be a destination for similar events.
The event concluded with tours of the new building for interested attendees.