CREC is celebrating its 50th birthday, and it has been my honor to spend the past 19 years as part of this wonderful organization. … When I first began at CREC in 1997, we had a staff of about 400, and the agency consisted of a handful of programs, mostly located in Hartford. Today, CREC manages 18 magnet schools, transports children throughout Hartford County, and has educational partners all over the world.