Hudson County Community College (HCCC) will host a 9/11 Memorial Program featuring remembrances, addresses, presentations and a documentary screening. The commemoration will be held Friday, September 11, 2026, at 2 p.m. in the Gabert Library Atrium, 71 Sip Avenue, in Jersey City, NJ. The Gabert Library Atrium offers panoramic views of New York City and Jersey City skylines. A steel fragment from the World Trade Center North Tower’s East Façade, which was obtained by the College in 2013, is housed on the Atrium balcony.
The HCCC 9/11 Memorial Program will open with a welcoming from HCCC Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Darryl Jones, followed by remarks from the Hudson County Board of County Commissioners Chairman Anthony Romano, Jr. Deputy Chief of Police, Stevens Institute of Technology Robert DiGenova will deliver the keynote address, and the College will screen the documentary, 9/11: Reclaiming Ground Zero. HCCC Assistant Professor of History, Political Science, and American Studies Dr. Christopher Cody will make a presentation, and HCCC Veterans Affairs and International Students Associate Director Zachary Forrest will moderate a discussion on 9/11 with New Jersey State Police Training Commission Vice Chairman James Sharrock and New Jersey Transit Counter-Terrorism Training Supervisor Lt. Keith Miano. HCCC Vice President for Institutional Engagement and Excellence Dr. Yeurys Pujols will deliver the closing remarks.
In his 39 years of public service, Robert DiGenova has held numerous statewide and national roles. A retired Captain with the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, he served two terms as President of the New Jersey College and University Public Safety Association and had leadership roles with New Jersey County Narcotics Commanders Association, National Narcotics Officers Association Coalition, the New Jersey Narcotics Enforcement Officers Association, the Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness Interfaith Advisory Council, and the New Jersey Private Sector Advisory Group (PSAG). Through his work with PSAG, he represents higher education in New Jersey on a board that advises on public safety, national security measures, and global threats in collaboration with U.S. government and intelligence agencies.
The documentary 9/11: Reclaiming Ground Zero examines the debate that ensued over rebuilding, remembrance, and renewal. The film shows how nearly 5,000 Americans gathered for the “Listening to the City” town hall at the Jacob Javits Center in 2002, shared their widely differing views on the future of Lower Manhattan, and came to core consensus on shaping New York’s 9/11 site as it is today. There will be additional showings of the documentary throughout the day. The HCCC 9/11 Memorial Program is open to HCCC students, staff, faculty, and all community members. There is no charge for admission, but those who wish to attend are encouraged to register at https://form.jotform.com/261885836629071
About Hudson County Community College
Hudson County Community College serves more than 20,000 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 Arts/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 the 2026 American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) “Awards of Excellence” and earned 2026 Advancing Institutional Equity and Belonging, Faculty Innovation, and Faculty of the Year Awards, in addition to Dale P. Parnell Faculty Recognition. HCCC earned AACC 2024 “Awards of Excellence” 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 sixth consecutive year, HCCC was selected as one of only a few community colleges in the United States to be named a “2026 Most Promising Place 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. HCCC also earned the 2026 Bellwether “Best in Showcase Award.” The College’s exemplary work in advancing student success has been recognized with “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. HCCC also earned the Campus Prevention Network Seal of Prevention in 2025, 2024 and 2023 for demonstrating leadership in digital prevention programming focused on student safety, well-being, and inclusion.
The Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) named the College the inaugural recipient of the 2025 ACCT national “Impact and Success Award.”
