After a challenging and unprecedented two years, Hostos Community College entered 2022 full of optimism and dedicated to embracing new beginnings, growth, and a continued commitment to excellence.

This year, Hostos was selected as one of 10 finalists for the prestigious $1 million 2023 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. We had the honor and privilege of welcoming representatives from the Aspen Prize committee to our beloved campus this fall and introducing them to our incredible faculty, staff and students—all of whom are Hostos’ soul. The College was also ranked No. 4 on Niche’s 2022 Best community Colleges in New York list and our dental hygiene program was recognized on the American Dental Association’s 2020-2021 list of 321 dental hygiene programs with nontraditional designs.

Additionally, we welcomed new administrators to the Hostos family this year. Four new divisional vice presidents were appointed at the top of the year: Dr. Shiang-Kwei Wang, Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs, Dr. La Toro Yates, Vice President of Student Development and Enrollment Management, Colette Atkins, Vice President for Institutional Advancement, and Evelyn A. Fernández-Ketcham, Vice President of Continuing Education and Workforce Development.
 

Initiatives and Grants

Hostos also welcomed Dr. Sofia Oviedo, Research Programs Director, to the Office of the President, who ensures both the mission of the College and grant activities align with the priorities of our institution. Over the last year, Dr. Oviedo has managed and overseen the President’s Initiatives for Student Success, College Growth and Stakeholders’ Engagement, made possible thanks to the generous $15 million gift given to Hostos in 2021 by philanthropist, author, and activist Ms. MacKenzie Scott. The initiatives include: Moreover, Hostos was one of six CUNY schools selected to utilize $3.98 million in City funding to help train the next generation of professionals for climate-smart careers and one of four CUNY colleges selected to partner with the Grow with Google Hispanic Serving Institutions (HIS) Career Readiness program. This month, The New York Community Trust announced its approval of a $100,000 award to the Hostos Community College Foundation, which will enable the Center for Bronx Nonprofits (CBNP) at Hostos to develop and deliver an Equitable Succession Planning Workshop Series for up to 15 nonprofits. And the CEWD was awarded an additional $200,000 grant from the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation to support its Community Health Worker (CHW) training program. This year’s funding will be used to train two additional cohorts of CHWs and pilot a foreign language credential for CHW trainees with existing language proficiency skills.
 

Recognition and Expertise

Members of the Hostos community—from our president to our faculty and staff—continued to reflect Hostos’ excellence in all that they did and received all due recognition for their outstanding work and contributions to panels, organizations, publications and more. This spring, President Daisy Cocco De Filippis was among 56 visionary leaders appointed by Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams to the “New” New York blue-ribbon panel, which examines the future of the city and region’s economy. The panel is comprised of leaders from across New York City’s business academic, nonprofit, labor and philanthropic sectors, and together they are developing actionable recommendations for robust and inclusive business districts and regions. President Cocco De Filippis also served as the keynote speaker for the First Annual CUNY-Wide Latinas in Higher Education conference held at Bronx Community College in September. Assistant Professors of Game Design Juno Morrow and Marcelo Viana Neto became members of New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ and MOME Game Development Industry Council, which advises the city’s production policies and programs in the Digital Games industry and is made up of various leaders of New York City’s digital games sector. Plus, Professor Yoel Rodriguez was selected to be part of the fourth cohort of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities’ (HACU) Leadership Academy/La Academia de Liderazgo. Carlos Guevara, Director of Educational Technology (EdTech) and Co-Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning, contributed to the 2022 EDUCAUSE Horizon Report, and Adjunct Assistant Professor Jamie Parker, Ph.D., published a peer-reviewed article titled “Clinical Study to Assess the Efficacy of a Novel Hair Loss Treatment,” in theMalaysian Journal of Medical and Biological Research.” Furthermore, the College kicked off the first Hostos Industry Summit, with a focus on nursing. The twice-annual summit is emblematic of the President’s commitment to supporting career and academic pathways that lead to family-sustaining wages and is an opportunity to convene employers, government, faculty, staff and students. Each will focus on a different industry sector.
 

Student and Alumni Achievements 

Our students continued to make us proud and earned well-deserved accolades, scholarships, recognition, and more. For instance, student Reola Alexander and alumna Folusho Adeoti were among those honored at the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society All-New York Academic Awards Team Ceremony held April 13, and scholars Andrea Vasquez, Maria Jesus Vasquez Guillen, and Elizabeth Soto were selected to participate in the American Heart Association’s 2022 Hispanic-Serving Institution Scholars Program, which began in September. Jose Armando Keppis — a Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) fellow and CUNY Research Scholar Program (CRSP) student — was recognized for his outstanding research presentation, titled “Ligand- and Structure-Guided Discovery of Entry Blockers for SARS-CoV-2 Spike Glycoprotein,” at the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minoritized Scientists in November.

We were also thrilled to hear from our alumni about their new and exciting endeavors. Alumnus Michael Cruz was awarded a 2022 Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Fellowship following a highly competitive nationwide selection process. We also learned that Winter 2022 graduate Ndongo Njie was accepted to Princeton University and Spring 2022 grad Gloria Mariel Lopes Carvalho has gone on to pursue her B.S. Degree in Nutrition and Food Studies at NYU’s Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. And Hostos alumna Ischia Bravo is on her way to becoming the first woman, and therefore the first Latina, to serve as Bronx County clerk in January.
 

Athletics 

It was another big year for our Caiman athletes. The men’s and women’s basketball teams became 2022 CUNYAC champs in February. The women’s team scored their fifth consecutive CUNYAC title when they defeated Bronx Community College, 6-40, and the top-seeded Hostos men’s team defeated second-seeded Queensborough, 76-63, to win the Steve Weingard trophy for the second year in a row.  Moreover, the #10 nationally ranked Hostos women's basketball team was selected to participate in the NJCAA Women's Basketball National Championship Tournament in March as an at large participant. The Caimans earned the #11 seed in the tournament. The Caimans knocked off the #6 seed Rock Valley Golden Eagles   in the first round and defeated Onondaga Lasers in the quarterfinal. The team then pulled out their third victory in as many days beating #7 seed Minnesota West in the NJCAA National Tournament Semifinal and finished as the national runner-up.  

Hostos athletics also expanded with the addition of Men's and Women's Track & Field and Men's and Women's Cross Country as varsity sports during 2022. We look forward to keeping up with their progress in the New Year. 
  

Looking Ahead

We are eager to explore and take on many more opportunities for growth, advancement, and celebration in the year ahead. We will kick off 2023 with the unveiling of our new ASAP, Accessibility Resource Center (ARC), and Student Success Coaching Unit (SSCU) offices, located at 429 Grand Concourse. The new facilities will take residence in the recently constructed affordable housing complex that was built on the lot formerly occupied by PS 31. The 26-story high-rise is now the tallest on the Grand Concourse. Additionally, administration is working to bring back Hostos’ cafeteria services by the end of January, and the President is committed to breaking bread with our students on a weekly basis as food services return.

We also look forward to welcoming new Extended Cabinet members to the Hostos community at the start of the spring semester. Furthermore, April 2023 will mark the 55th anniversary of the College. We are planning a myriad of events celebrating our great institution’s commitment to and impact on our beloved community. Stay tuned for more exciting updates in the New Year!