Convocation Keynote Speaker

Keynote Address: What Is Your Legacy

Dumpster diving, panhandling, and drinking were once everyday activities for Frederick Shegog. Despite a decade of alcohol abuse and time spent homeless, Shegog transformed himself. First, a successful college graduate, now a public speaker with a passion to share his transformational journey to recovery.

Frederick has presented keynote addresses to educational conferences, colleges, and other venues all over the country, including Achieving the Dream (ATD), The National Institute for Staff, Organizational Development (NISOD), and The Texas Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (TACRAO).

Frederick is a member of multiple boards that support various community outreach initiatives, including the Students Recover board, which provides online recovery support that is grounded in equity and justice, and the board of BHI, which focuses on substance use disorders and related mental health conditions in teens. Frederick also consults with the Clara Brown Entrepreneurial Academy in Aurora, Colorado, which promotes an entrepreneurial mindset to young minds. His participation at various press conferences with Governor Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania contributed to the passing of the Pennsylvania HungerFree Campus Bill.

An exposé on Frederick’s life was published in the March 2022 edition of The Chronicle of Higher Education, titled “The Redemption of Frederick Shegog”, and received the Education Writers Award for a feature story. He was voted a Philadelphia Region’s Black Men Icon of 2020. A documentary of his life story is forthcoming.

Frederick is a proud graduate of Delaware County Community College and served as the commencement speaker at West Chester University where he graduated summa cum laude. Frederick states, “College should not only change my bank account, but my soul as well!”

To learn more, visit www.freddyshegog.com.

Speaker Spotlight

Professor Joseph Gallo

Associate Professor of Theater Arts
Faculty Greeting
Convocation 2023

Professor Joseph Gallo began his career at HCCC as an adjunct instructor and was hired as a full-time Instructor of Theatre Arts in the fall of 2013. He was tenured in 2018 and was promoted to Assistant Professor in 2019. At that time, he was tasked with designing HCCC’s first Theatre Classroom. He served as Coordinator for Theatre and Film from 2012 to 2021. Joseph holds a Master of Fine Arts in Playwriting from Ohio University and Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from Rowan University. He has served on various college-wide and community committees over the years. He has years of experience in film, TV and theatre development. Joseph was the recipient of the 2021 New Jersey Theatre Alliance Grant for New Work.

Prisca Agombe

Alumni Address
Business, Culinary Arts, and Hospitality Management
Class of 2019

Prisca Agombe is a Budget and Fiscal Policy Analyst for the Center for New York City Affairs. Her work focuses on public economic policy in the state of New York. She received her Associate degree in Business Administration from Hudson County Community College in 2019, a Bachelor’s degree in economics and Public Policy from Rutgers University in 2021, and a Master’s degree in Economics at Binghamton University in 2023. Prisca is on the path for a Ph.D. in Economics at the New School University.

SAVE the DATE

Save the date on upcoming events and learn more about them!

• Center for Online Learning Faculty Workshops (Various dates, 2023)
• Hudson County Community College 9/11 Memorial (September 11, 2023)
• Aspiring Student Leadership Conference 2023 (November 13, 2023)
• Teaching and Learning Symposium on Social Justice in Higher Education (February 26, 2024 - March 1, 2024)

Past Convocation Events

• Fall 2022
• Fall 2021
• Fall 2020

MISSION OF THE COLLEGE

Hudson County Community College provides its diverse communities with inclusive, high-quality educational programs and services that promote student success and upward social and economic mobility.

VISION STATEMENT

As one of the nation’s leading and most diverse urban community colleges, we aspire to offer consistently best-practice, transformative educational and economic opportunities for our students and all residents of Hudson County.

VALUES STATEMENT

Hudson County Community College is committed to these values:

Holistic Services

Understanding through Data

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Student Success

Open to All

National Distinction

Collaboration and Engagement

Academic Excellence

Responsible Stewardship of Resources

Ethical Behavior, Integrity, and Transparency

Support of Innovation and Leadership

Hudson County Community College Board of Trustees
William J. Netchert, Esq., Chair
Bakari G. Lee, Esq., Vice Chair
Pamela E. Gardner, Secretary/Treasurer
Edward J. DeFazio, Esq.
Joseph V. Doria Jr., Ed.D.
Frank J. Gargiulo
Roberta Kenny
Daniel Menendez, Student Alumni Representative
Jeanette Peña
Silvia Rodriguez
Harold G. Stahl Jr.
Christopher M. Reber, Ph.D., College President

County Executive and Board of County Commissioners
Thomas A. DeGise, County Executive
Anthony L. Romano, Jr., Chairperson
Jerry Walker, Vice-Chairperson
Fanny J. Cedeño, Chair Pro Temp
Yraida Aponte-Lipski
Robert P. Baselice
Albert J. Cifelli, Esq.
Kenneth Kopacz
William P. O’Dea
Caridad Rodriguez

Officers of the College
Christopher M. Reber, Ph.D., College President

Nicholas A. Chiaravalloti, J.D., Ed.D., Vice President for External Affairs and Senior Counsel to the President

Patricia Clay, Associate Vice President and Chief Information Officer

Heather DeVries, Ph.D., Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and Assessment, Accreditation Liaison Officer

Lisa Dougherty, Ed.D., Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment

Nicole Bouknight Johnson, Vice President for Advancement and Communications

Darryl Jones, Ph.D., Vice President for Academic Affairs

Anna Krupitskiy, J.D., Vice President for Human Resources

Lori Margolin, Associate Vice President, School of Continuing Education and Workforce Development

Yeurys Pujols, Ed.D., Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

John Scanlon, Associate Vice President, Institutional Research and Planning

Veronica D’Alessandro Zeichner, CPA, Vice President for Business and Finance and Chief Financial Officer

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