River View Observer Contributor – In an evolving college landscape, executive leaders must adapt and innovate to stay competitive, build important relationships, and oversee strategic planning to align with their institution’s vision and goals. The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) selected Hudson County Community College (HCCC) executives Dr. Joseph Caniglia and Jennifer Valcarcel to participate in the organization’s seventh annual Leadership Academy/La Academia de Liderazgo cohort of 26 Fellows.
The Leadership Academy helps rising stars and high-level executives enhance their skills and improve their institutions. Faculty include current and former presidents, chancellors, and senior administrators who bring over 100 years of combined experience in various sectors of higher education, including private/public universities, community colleges, and faith-based institutions. Mentorship with a university president or senior-level administrator is a key component of the one-year program. Participants develop a project designed to impact the Fellow’s current institution.
Dr. Joseph Caniglia is the Executive Director of the HCCC North Hudson Campus (NHC) in Union City, NJ, serving nearly 3,000 students, more than 70% of whom are Hispanic. He began his career at the College as an adjunct professor, progressing to tenured faculty member, and Interim Associate Dean of English and English as a Second Language. Since assuming his leadership role at NHC in 2021, Dr. Caniglia has helped expand programs, launched the Annual Student Leadership Conference, which attracts hundreds of students from local high schools, supported the HCCC Latino Advisory Council, and presented on Learning Communities and Student Success at national conferences. He consistently motivates colleagues, advocates for students, and implements changes that enhance students’ experiences.
Jennifer Valcarcel is the HCCC Associate Dean of Career and Transfer Pathways, an office she helped build from the ground up. She is responsible for leading and overseeing Career and Technical Education initiatives; fostering student success; collaborating with faculty, employers, and transfer institutions; developing and strengthening articulation agreements; and creating career opportunities. Her previous roles as Director of Transfer Pathways, Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) Counselor, and EOF Student Services Specialist prepared her for executive leadership. Ms. Valcarcel’s participation in the 2022-23 Aspen Institute/American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) Transfer Intensive Project led to the creation of the nationally recognized HCCC/NJCU CONNECT program and its expansion. She oversaw the launch and maintenance of career readiness tools such as Handshake to provide student access to job and internship opportunities, and has led the development of a future University Center for upper-level coursework that will debut upon the opening of the College’s new Center for Student Success in fall 2026.
“I am confident Dr. Caniglia and Ms. Valcarcel will bring valued perspectives to the cohort and use the HACU fellowship to benefit the College and our students,” said HCCC President Dr. Christopher Reber. “We are very proud of them.”
Since its inception, the HACU Leadership Academy/La Academia de Liderazgo Program has advanced the careers of diverse leaders within a wide range of higher education institutions, demonstrating its value in expanding opportunities at the highest levels of college and university leadership. Fellows participate in development activities to prepare for leadership roles in the full spectrum of institutions of higher learning, with an emphasis on Hispanic-Serving Institutions and Emerging HSIs. The fellowship includes webinars and three seminars, with the first seminar to be held this November in conjunction with HACU’s 39th Annual Conference in Aurora, Colorado. The second seminar will be held in April 2026 at HACU’s National Capitol Forum in Washington, D.C. The third seminar will take place at a still to be determined international location.
About Hudson County Community College
Hudson County Community College serves 23,000 credit and non-credit students annually. The College offers more than 90 degree and certificate programs, including award-winning English as a Second Language; Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM); Culinary Arts/Hospitality Management; Nursing and Health Professions; and Humanities and Social Sciences. The HCCC Culinary/Hospitality Management program was ranked number six in the U.S. by Best Choice Schools. The College’s School of Continuing Education and Workforce Development offers cutting-edge, industry-recognized, stackable credentials in alignment with high-priority workforce needs.
HCCC has partnerships with major four-year colleges and universities in the greater New Jersey-New York area and beyond, accommodating seamless transfer of credits for further undergraduate and graduate education.
The College has received dozens of national awards throughout the years. HCCC was a finalist in seven categories of last year’s American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) national “Awards of Excellence” and earned 2024 CEO of the Year, Faculty of the Year, and Student Success Awards. In 2023, HCCC received the Outstanding Member Institution Award from the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU).
For the fifth consecutive year, HCCC was selected as one of only a few community colleges in the United States to be named among the “2025 Most Promising Places to Work in Community Colleges” by the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD). HCCC was one of 22 community colleges in the nation, and the only college in New Jersey, to be recognized by ModernThink LLC and the “Chronicle of Higher Education” as a 2025, 2024, 2023 and 2022 “Great College to Work For®” and named to the 2024 and 2023 “Great Colleges Honor Roll of Distinction.”
HCCC is one of two colleges in the United States to be named a Top Ten Finalist in all three program categories for the nationally recognized 2023 Bellwether Awards, and received the 2023 Bellwether Award for the College’s cutting-edge “Hudson Scholars” program, which also won the 2024 Bellwether Legacy Award.
The College’s exemplary work in advancing student success has been recognized with 2025, 2024 and 2023 “Leader College of Distinction” designation by Achieving the Dream, the national nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing community colleges as catalysts for equity and mobility in their communities. The Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) named the College the sole recipient of the 2025 ACCT Northeast Regional Impact and Success, and Faculty Member Awards. HCCC also earned the Campus Prevention Network Seal of Prevention in 2024 and 2023 for demonstrating leadership in digital prevention programming focused on student safety, well-being, and inclusion.
About the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities
The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, founded in 1986, represents more than 500 colleges and universities in the United States, Latin America, Spain and school districts throughout the U.S. HACU programs and services are available to all students, faculty, and staff at HACU-member institutions. The Association’s headquarters are in San Antonio, Texas, with offices in Washington, D.C., Sacramento, California and Chicago, Illinois.
