As Executive Vice President for Strategic Partnerships and Enterprise Performance, Dr. Coley will focus on strategic priorities critical to student and institutional success; report on college indicators performance based on data analytics, institutional effectiveness and research through the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Planning; work with CT State administrative leaders and affiliated foundations/institutional advancement offices to augment external resources through pre- and post- award grant processes and outcomes facilitated by the Office of Sponsored Programs; and, pursue regional, statewide and national partnerships to help achieve institutional innovation strategies to enhance instructional and engagement technology across the colleges.

Dr. Chaisson-Cardenas was a national executive fellow at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (a Smithsonian partner) where his research focused on resistance, pushback, and backlash to institutional Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts. He has over 20 years of experience developing, supporting, and evaluating programs all over the United States and Latin America. He has been recognized at the national level for his work transforming large multimillion-dollar systems towards equity.

He holds a Ph.D. in Education Leadership and Policy, and an MSW from the University of Iowa.  As a young adult, John-Paul began his organizing career while working in meatpacking plants in Kansas, since then he has organized local, state, and national efforts on behalf of immigrant and refugee communities.

Dr. Chaisson-Cardenas serves as the prominent thought leader and strategist responsible for guiding efforts to understand and operationalize equity and inclusion throughout all aspects of CT State. He is responsible for providing transformative leadership, vision and direction for critical diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. The vice president will assist in assessing the political, social, economic, and institutional environments for recommending and implementing system policy.

Dr. Lombella transitioned to Asnuntuck in 2009, after working as an Operations Manager. He began in the Advanced Manufacturing Technology Center as an Adjunct Credit Instructor and over the years became the Director and then Associate Dean of Workforce Development and Continuing Education. In 2012, he became the CFO/Dean of Administration of the college, and subsequently maintained those responsibilities while also serving as the college’s Interim President and Chief Executive Officer. In May 2014, Dr. Lombella was named President of Asnuntuck Community College, and in 2017, he also became the Interim President of Tunxis Community College in Farmington in a dual presidential role. In 2019, the BOR appointed Dr. Lombella as the Regional President over four schools (Asnuntuck, Naugatuck, Northwestern and Tunxis). Then in 2022, the BOR appointed Dr. Lombella as the Executive Vice President of Workforce and Economic Development over all 12 institutions across Connecticut.

Dr. Lombella, who is a proud first-generation community college graduate, holds a Master of Management degree from Cambridge College, and earned his Doctor of Education from the Abraham S. Fischler School of Education at Nova Southeastern University. Dr. Lombella is passionate about the transformative power of education and keeps students at the center of all decisions he makes.

Dr. Lombella serves as CT State’s chief workforce development officer, overseeing the current regional workforce officers, all statewide workforce development programming, Business and Industry Training divisions, Continuing Education (CE) non-credit divisions, Advanced Manufacturing Technology Centers and programs, and the associated faculty and staff.

Dr. Rob Steinmetz’s passion for community colleges began when he started as a student at Chattanooga State Community College in Chattanooga, TN. As a first-generation student from a working-class family, he had no clear plan for college and registered for classes last-minute. His experience as a student at Chattanooga State changed his life. It created a passion for working at community colleges and he has dedicated his life to supporting equitable student success. He is passionate about seeing each student as an individual and recognizing that students have unique needs.

Rob is a collaborative change agent with a proven track record of moving forward large-scale innovation. Specific expertise includes behavioral intervention, budget management, community and legislative outreach, compliance, DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion), fundraising, public safety, shared governance, strategic planning, strategic student success and enrollment management, and student development. He also has community college teaching experience and has served on management advisory teams with college collective bargaining units.

He has over 20-years from experience working at community colleges and currently serves as the Executive Vice President College Services and Student Affairs for Connecticut State Community College (CT State). He previously served as the President of the Capital-East Region of Connecticut’s Community Colleges. Immediately prior to his work in Connecticut, Rob served as Vice President for Student Affairs at Portland Community College in Oregon. He has also served as the Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management at Harrisburg Areas Community College in Pennsylvania, Associate Dean of Enrollment Management and College Registrar at Calhoun Community College in Alabama, and as both the Director of Retention and Enrollment Services and Coordinator of Student Activities and Orientation at Chattanooga State Community College in Tennessee.

Rob earned an Associate of Science degree from Chattanooga State Community College. He also holds his Bachelor of Science and Master of Public Administration degrees from the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga, as well as a Doctorate of Education degree in Higher Education Administration from the University of Alabama. His academic research, including his dissertation, focuses on equitable student success at community colleges.

Rob lives in Manchester, CT with his husband, Benjamyn, and their three dogs (Boq, Nessa Rose, and Olivia). He enjoys cooking, board games, all things theatre, and SCUBA diving.

Rob Steinmetz is the Executive Vice President of College Services and Student Affairs and as such serves as CT State’s chief operating and student success officer. He is responsible for all aspects of student affairs, including the guided pathways services, student health and wellness services, and basic student needs. He liaises with the CSCU system office, and is also responsible for quality assurance improvement, risk management, capital planning, and public safety.

As Interim Vice President of Enrollment Management Tamika Davis oversees financial aid, enrollment and retention services, recruitment, admissions, and community outreach centrally while partnering with campus stakeholders to deliver modern and inclusive services.   

Ann Harrison heads up Strategic Communications and Marketing for CT State, and as Chief of Staff manages the President’s office while liaising with college, system, and external leaders to facilitate collaboration with key units through research-informed and results-oriented communications.

Dr. Kalicki has held a 40-year career in higher education working at two and four year, public, private and religiously affiliated colleges and universities. He has served as the Chief of Student Affairs at four schools and as the President of a Community College. Kalicki is also a part-time online instructor for graduate programs in higher education administration and student affairs with American Public University.

He hold a B.A. in Business Administration, a M.A. in Public Administration from the University of Hartford, and a Ph.D. in Educational Administration from the University at Albany (NY).

Believing in the importance of service to the community, Scott has served as the Board of Directors President for Special Olympics New Hampshire, a New Hampshire CASA as a Visiting Nurses Hospice volunteer, and as the Executive Director of Gilda’s Club New Hampshire.

As the Interim Vice President for Campus Operations Scott Kalicki oversees campus leaders during the FY22-23 transitional year to enhance connectivity between campuses, senior leadership, and the president’s office. He is also the liaison with CSCU general counsel to support the discovery, assessment, consolidation, and updating of agreements across the twelve current colleges.

Dr. LaPierre-Dreger serves as CT State’s chief academic officer as the Interim Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs. She oversees all teaching and learning functions, and the alignment of programs and curriculum across CT State’s six academic schools including Arts & Humanities, Engineering & Technology, Business & Hospitality, Social & Behavioral Sciences and Science & Mathematics and Nursing & Health Careers.

Kerry A. Kelley joined the CT State Community College in May 2020 with more than two decades of public finance leadership experience. A veteran Connecticut budget and policy advisor, Kerry is highly respected throughout the executive and legislative branches, and across the political spectrum, for her knowledge and leadership in state budget analysis, policymaking, and legislative affairs. Formerly, she was the fiscal and program policy section chief for education and workforce programs at the Office of Policy and Management, overseeing twelve state agencies with General Fund budgets totaling more than $4.1 billion annually. Kerry has a deep understanding of the legislative process having served as a budget and policy analyst with the Connecticut General Assembly’s non-partisan fiscal office. She is a leader in higher education policy and finance, serving on a variety of bodies in Connecticut and nationally including: the UConn Health Center Finance Corporation Board of Directors; the Connecticut Higher Education Planning Commission; the Connecticut Higher Education Trust (CHET) Advisory Committee; Complete College America’s Connecticut Alliance Team; and the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston’s Children’s Savings Account Consortium.

Kerry was a 2006 Robert J. Thompson fellow, awarded by the Conference of State Governments and the Fels Institute of Government at the University of Pennsylvania. Kerry received a BA in Political Science from UConn, and MPA from UConn with a concentration in Public Finance. She and her husband reside in West Hartford.

If you wish to contact Dr. Maduko, call 860-612-7035 or email jmaduko@commnet.edu

Executive Assistant to the President – Dennisse Arroyo, email: darroyo@commnet.edu phone: (860) 612-7011)

Email the President - CTState-President@ct.edu

Requests for the President to Attend an Event or Speaking Requests – can we make a request button? Or maybe just add, email Denisse Arroyo to request

Media Inquiries – Ann Harrison, Chief of Staff and Associate Vice President for Communication and Strategic Marketing, email:  aharrison@commnet.edu, phone: (860) 612-7025

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