Serafín Méndez-Mendez
Posted inCT Viewpoints

President Ojakian, the NEASC rejection is not devastating after all

by Serafín Méndez-Mendez

A few months ago, the Connecticut Mirror afforded me the opportunity to be one of the first critics to “come out” on the misguided initiative called “Students First” led by Mark Ojakian, president of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities, and his benevolent Board of Regents.  May the good Lord afford them some compassion for the wasted time we all had to invest on this.  It has drained many of us. I could have retrieved many more Puerto Rican students displaced from Hurricane Maria if I was not so distracted by this bad mix of ideas and pure scorn towards the system I have been part of for the last 28 years.

Posted inCT Viewpoints

Attempting to succeed in business without really trying

by Serafín Méndez-Mendez

President Ojakian: on issues like this, like crafting a budget, a process you know very well, negotiation must take place. You have excluded the faculty and most administrators who could have provided knowledge, expertise, and support. That was not very smart. Yes, Connecticut needs to balance its budget, but not at the expense of the already underfunded, and therefore undervalued CSCU system. Mr. Ojakian, the Board of Regents needs to reign you in and slow you down.

Posted inCT Viewpoints

Let down by Hartford City Hall

by Serafín Méndez-Mendez

A few weeks ago, a burglar stole my beloved special edition Vespa from my condominium in the Farmington Avenue area of Hartford — the second one that gets stolen from me. The policeman who took the report told me “just file an insurance claim. We will never find it.” The Vespa I may be able to replace if I were to move into the suburbs. But sadly, what I cannot replace is my trust in City Hall, because this crime is not an outlier. We have had more than 22 burglaries in the neighborhood.