Voice Profile

By Josh LaBella

Voice Reporter

As a teacher, principal, justice of the peace, Board of Education member and chairman of the Republican Town Committee, Pat Libero has dedicated her life to public service. She said she sees the potential of the city.

Libero, who was born and raised in West Haven, said she went to Southern after graduating from Lauralton Hall in Milford. She studied special education as well as eventually getting her master’s and sixth-year degree there.

“I started at Pagels and taught there for 27 years,” said Libero. “I did a lot of different things when I was there. I loved the school. I loved the community. I was like the teacher in charge. I ran meetings and covered classes. So, it’s not like I stayed in my little special ed circle.”

In between having her first and second child, Libero said she went back to school to get her administrative degree as she wanted to be a principal. She got her first job as principal in 2001 at Bailey Middle school. Eighteen months later, she was hired to be assistant principal at the high school.

“Then I went to Carrigan for five years as principal,” said Libero. “I went to Mackrille for my last year.”

The former principal said in all her roles she found it important to listen to students and their parents. Libero retired in 2011 and said she has had a different job every year. She is hoping to work in Southern’s school of education starting in January.

It was in 2011 that Libero was elected to the Board of Education. She said she wanted to take her experience as an educator and continue to work to improve the quality of West Havens school system.

“I guess I just wanted to stay involved,” said Libero. “I think when you go from being a teacher to a principal or assistant principal it’s a whole different perspective of things you didn’t know.”

Libero said being an administrator and then a board member allowed her to see the reasoning behind big policy decisions that teachers have to carry out. She said one issue she now has a greater understanding of the budget process for the board of education.

As she just won reelection to the board this November, Libero said she hopes they can hire a grant writer and a public relations specialist for the school system. She said the former can help them gain additional funding for the schools while the latter can keep the parents of West Haven students informed on the day-to-day news or important breaking stories, which she thinks is important.

She also said she hopes the board can work on reintroducing introductory courses in sewing, cooking, woodwork and other shop classes in pre-high school curriculums.

Libero had been a longtime member of the RTC when she decided to run for the chairman position. She said she was encouraged to run by outgoing chair and former mayoral candidate Michele Gregorio as well as State Representative Charles Ferraro.

The past election was a “bit of a learning curve” for the party. Libero said they learned a lot about fundraising. They also had a primary, which was rare for the republicans of West Haven.

“Instead of unifying us, the primaries have had the opposite effect,” said Libero. “I think we need to sit down as a group and decide what direction we are going in as well as redefine what our goals are.”

Libero said it can be hard for people not to take things personally in local level politics. According to her, it is important that they not “burn bridges” with the people they live with.

The issues the party is going through just come with the territory of the growth and change they are experiencing, said the chairwoman. She said mistakes are going to be made and it is on her and others to mitigate them and continue forward.

According to Libero, there is ample opportunity for development in the city. She said there are a lot of people with good ideas that could spark improvement who are turned off by the “inner circle politics” that create barriers to entering the space. She described the issue as something that needed to be addressed.

Libero said she is very proud of the school system and the city of West Haven, even if it makes her “crazy sometimes.” She said when push comes to shove, Westies pull together and support one another.

By Josh LaBella

Voice Reporter

With his Christian faith and a sense of community, Phil Liscio has worked over the past decade to help others and give back through a group he founded called Westies Care.

Liscio, who was born in Buffalo, NY, was raised in Milford. He and his wife Janet moved to West Haven about 30 years ago.

“We got married and bought a house here a couple months later,” he said.

Liscio said before he met his wife, he was very involved in doing work with the Catholic Church. He said his volunteer work in West Haven started when he and Janet had children.

“I was a stay at home dad,” said Liscio. “I would do things like take them to the park. Or I would take them to recreation department [events] like ‘Mommy and Me’ which they changed to ‘Mommy, Daddy and Me’ because of me. You start meeting people.”

He said Patty Horvath told him he should get involved in Edith E. Mackrille Elementary School’s PTA. Through his work in the PTA and coaching his daughter’s sports teams, Liscio began to get more involved in the community.

“With that, and coming to church here, you start to wonder what else you can do to help people,” said Liscio. “It evolved into the things we do now.”

Liscio said the creation of Westies Care was a result of starting a scholarship in the name of his son, Danny, who died at the age of 20. He said everything the group does is to give back.

“Everything we do is steeped in our Christian faith,” said Liscio. “The Bible tells you to do those things.”

In addition to the scholarship, the Liscios hosted a blood drive at the First Congregational Church, of which Phil and his family are members. He said another driving factor in the growth of Westies Care came when he was bringing food to the West Haven Emergency Action Taskforce.

“I was in total shock when I actually saw people I knew going there for help,” said Liscio. “This is when the economy was bottomed out – 2008 or 2009. Everybody was really struggling. I was struck by that. That people I know, who are good, hard working, taxpaying, income earning people, needed help.”

After talking to Rose Majestic, the Director of WHEAT, Liscio decided to have a food drive that summer because Majestic told him people are less likely to donate food at that time of year. They hosted a food drive called the Westies Care Food Fight: Red Sox vs. Yankees.

“We weighed the food, and that counted as points,” he said. “We raised more money, and brought in more food, in one weekend than Rose said she had ever seen in a summer food drive.”

Westies Care started with just Phil, Janet, their daughters and a number of volunteers. In order to start to grow, as well as raise money, Liscio said they need to become an official non-profit organization. He said his friends helped them with that.

“Colene and Peter MacDonald came to me and said they had a lawyer friend who may do it [help them apply for 501c3 status] pro bono,” said Liscio. “We got the paperwork together. They did all the work. We became a 501c3. We got an executive board and that core group still works together on everything.”

Liscio made a point to say that Westies Care does not do all their work alone. He said they work with other community partners such as their church, the Rotary Club and the Vertical Church.

“It’s not difficult,” he said. “You know what’s difficult? It’s not being able to help everybody who needs it.”

Westies Care has held a yearly banquet for the past decade where they honor members of the community and give out scholarships to students going on to higher education. He said last year they gave out $12,000 in scholarships.

The group has grown over time to hold many events including a Care and Share program at the Apple Festival and a Christmas dinner at the First Congregational Church. They also hold a dinner, with the help of other groups, at the church every Tuesday for those who need it.

“We [also] do a lot of small stuff,” said Liscio. “Every time we give a gift card or give a basket of food, we don’t document that stuff. That’s just the right Christian thing. We do that year-round.”

Liscio said he feels blessed when he, his family, and his friends can help others. He said if they were not giving back, they would not feel they were living up to what to what they are expected to be.

By Josh LaBella

Voice Reporter

Robert Bohan’s career guiding students sprouted from a love from coaching sports.

Bohan, the principal of Bailey Middle School, started coaching as community service for a religion class he was taking at Notre Dame High School. He said it was during his time coaching at St. Lawrence School, as well as for the West Haven Fundamental Basketball League, that he realized his love for helping young people.

“I went back to St. Lawrence School where I had gone from grade one to grade eight,” said Bohan. “I did some baseball coaching. I did some basketball coaching. That really hooked me on it. I loved working with kids. I loved the whole process.”

When Bohan started college, he was a communications major at the University of New Haven. He continued coaching at St. Lawrence and soon decided to switch to studying education at Southern Connecticut State University.

“It was about the coaching,” said Bohan. “My thinking was that it would open avenues to coaching.”

As a student teacher, Bohan worked in classrooms here in West Haven but also in Northford. After graduating he ended up working as a long-term substitute in Northford.

“It was a great experience. It was a full year” said Bohan. “I did everything you would do as a regular teacher except in the long-term substitute position.”

The principal said he got hired for a job teaching sixth grade at Malloy School the following summer. Bohan said he mirrors the teaching process to the coaching process; it is just a different venue.

“You’re working with kids. You’re guiding them. You’re assisting them. You are taking them on a journey,” said Bohan.

Bohan said in both situations it is critical to motivate. He said it can be more challenging to motivate a student opposed to a player. His reasoning was because in most situations the player wants to be there while a student may not.

“You’ve got to bring the content, whatever subject it is, to life for them,” said Bohan. “They’ve got to be able to connect to it. Without being able to do that, you’re never going to get to them.”

The educator spent 12 years at Malloy School – teaching sixth grade, fifth grade, fourth grade and third grade at different times. Bohan said he felt it was time to move on so he got a job as a sixth-grade math teacher at Bailey while he also worked on getting his administration certification.

“I wanted some experience on a different level,” said Bohan. “So, I came here and taught math for four years. From there I did five years working as a math coach – working around the district with different teachers, mainly behind the scenes. Then I became the assistant principal at Bailey Middle School in 2013.”

Bohan worked as the assistant principal for four years before becoming the principal. He said the job is similar in principle to being a teacher or coach but on a larger scale.

“You go from 25 kids to 900 kids,” said Bohan. “You don’t know them intimately but the responsibility on my end is huge. They’re all yours in a sense. Then, of course, you’ve got the adults (parents, teachers and staff), who you are working should-to-shoulder with.”

He said he never planned to be an administrator but thought he has something to “bring to the table.” Bohan said he took a little from each administrator he worked under.

Bohan said he greatly appreciates the relationships he has developed with students and their parents. He added that, at Bailey, the administrators, teachers and staff take a collaborative approach to guiding and helping students. He said his job would be much harder without them.

Principal Bohan said he has never regretted the path he took. He said spending his years in the classroom were invaluable to him.

“It still helps me today,” said Bohan. “It’s a process. Where you’re working with the kids and their families as an overall family approach here. I always say in my phone calls, together we are Bailey.”

By Josh LaBella

Voice Reporter

By painting a picture in the theater of the mind, George DeMaio said he used his skills to teach student’s history and to highlight high school athletics.

DeMaio was born and raised in West Haven. He spent his childhood and adolescence playing basketball, baseball, soccer and, occasionally, football. Sports have always been very important to the broadcaster and radio host, as they are for many West Haven residents.

“I was honored my senior year by being named athlete of the year in 1966,” said DeMaio. “In fact, in December of last year, I was inducted into the West Haven Hall of Fame.”

After graduating high school, DeMaio said he went on to study elementary education at Southern Connecticut State University. When he finished his degree in 1970, he applied for and got a 5th grade teaching position at Thompson School. He said it was an ominous beginning.

“That particular year, being so pumped up to get my first teaching job, they went on strike,” said DeMaio. “So, I had to wait two weeks before I actually started my teaching career. I actually picketed with the teachers. That’s how I met them.”

DeMaio said he taught at Thompson for four years before leaving to work various jobs including one at Southern New England Telecommunications, a telecommunications company. It was during this time, while DeMaio and his wife were raising their two sons in East Haven that his friend Ralph Solli told him about a sportscasting job opening at KC101.

The broadcaster said he had done some play-by-play broadcasting on the town’s community access show. According to DeMaio, he recording a sports report in one take, and sent it in. He said he was notified soon after that his final interview would be a live sports report on the station.

When he walked into the station, DeMaio said he was wearing his championship jacket from coaching East Haven mini basketball. He said they jokingly told him that if he got the job, they would call him “The Coach,” the name stuck.

The broadcaster went into the studio and did his broadcast from memory, without notes. He said he got a call later that night informing him he was hired. DeMaio said he was always fascinated by sports broadcasting, citing the famous New York Yankees broadcaster Mel Allen as one of his influences.

“When I was a young kid, even in elementary school, whenever I played sports, I always did play-by-plays of the game,” he said. “Don’t ask me why.”

DeMaio worked part time at the radio station while also working at SNET. In 1985 he became a full-time employee of KC101. He said his skill in broadcasting comes from knowing and loving the whatever sport he is covering and by “doing his homework” on both teams playing.

“I think the one thing I’ve told people who tell me they want to do [sports broadcasting] is you have to make your game, the game your broadcasting, the best game ever played,” said DeMaio. “No matter what the teams are and what the score is. If you don’t, why would they [the audience] listen?”

The Coach said a good radio broadcaster paints a vivid picture in the mind of the listener. He said

During his tenure at KC101 and his current station WELI, DeMaio has grown his programming to cover men and women’s basketball and hockey as well as baseball, softball and football. He said he enjoys covering high school sports and has turned down higher paying job offers. He never wanted to move around, he said, and always thought it was important to highlight high school athletes.

“The kids love it. The parents love it,” said DeMaio. “The aunts. The uncles. The grandparents. It’s a place for them to listen and hear about their kids. That’s what it’s all about.”

DeMaio said he covers over one hundred games a year and is adding more to his schedule this year and in 2020. He described his job as “a lot of work” but added that he has “a lot of fun.”

From 1994 to 2008, DeMaio went back to part time as a radio host while he taught middle school social studies in East Haven. He said he brought the same type of energy he used in coaching and broadcasting to the classroom.

“I get into it,” he said. “I want to make social studies, which can be boring, exciting. They played games. I made contests. If there was something else I could have done [in life] I would have been a gameshow host. When I go and cover a big game, I want to have fun. And, I wanted my kids to have fun in the classroom.”

Looking to the future, the Coach said he thinks he will know when it’s time to retire – but that time has not come. DeMaio said he still enjoys the work he does. When he does retire, he wants to travel around the country with his wife and dog to visit the Major League Baseball stadiums.

By Josh LaBella

Voice Reporter

Bert Siclari used the principles he learned on the football field to help students succeed.

Siclari, who was born and raised in West Haven, said he grew up playing whatever sport was in season with kids from the Savin Rock neighborhood. He added that he enjoyed being a “beach bum” in the summer.

The Westie soon found football to be his passion. A defensive end, he played in high school, culminating with an undefeated season in his senior year.

“We ended up being ranked number-one in the state of Connecticut,” said Siclari. “We ended up being ranked number one New England. We ended up being ranked number five in the nation. The thing I like to hang my hat on, is that none of the players ever bragged about it.”

After high school, Siclari went to Milford Academy – a preparatory school – where he continued to play the sport. Eventually, he went to play at Idaho State University, getting a full scholarship. He said he was “undersized” compared to other players out west.

“I was probably 245 at the time,” said Siclari. “I was small. I got pounded.”

Siclari described his time at the university as a series of beatings. He said it was a big change from what he was used to in Connecticut. In hindsight, he said he should have played for a local college or university.

He played at Idaho for two and half years and then transferred to the University of Bridgeport. Siclari said he played better at the school. He graduated with a degree in physical education, which sent him off on a career in molding the minds of students.

“From there, I started my master’s in physical education, where I specialized in physical education for the handicapped,” said Siclari. “I finished my degree in two and half years. Then I got my sixth-year degree in administration and supervision.”

Siclari said during all those years he spent any time he could helping out coaches on the football field. This was Siclari’s start in what came to be a 33-year time as a coach. He said he enjoyed working with the players.

While coaching, Siclari also worked construction and as a substitute teacher. He was then asked by the Board of Education to apply for a job as the director of an alternative education program.

“They wanted to set up a program to save kids who were smart but were failing,” said Siclari. “They didn’t give me any direction – that was it.”

The coach and teacher said he did not even have a room when they hired him – he worked out of the football room in the high school. He said the teachers sent him 27 of the toughest students in the school. Over time, he developed a screening process for student admittance as well as an education curriculum. He said the program grew over the years.

The program was on a volunteer basis; no student was forced into it. He said he was strict, involving parents if anyone stepped out of line, was late or cut class. Siclari said the role combined the jobs of a teacher and guidance counselor.

He ran this program for 18 years while also coaching football. Siclari said he is still approached by former students who tell him he impacted their lives for the better.

“As I get older, and I’m bumping into these guys, whether students or football players, it’s true,” said Siclari. “I really didn’t know the influence that I had on them. I wasn’t there to influence them. I was there to help them out. It’s heavy duty. You appreciate it later on in life, because it makes you realize how fulfilling your life is.”

Siclari said he did not know at the time, but he had found his purpose. The program was evaluated by the state as being 83% effective. He said he always enjoyed working with teenagers, adding that he always related to the students who “had a lot of problems.” He said there are a lot of kids who still hold a special place in his heart.

When the city went bankrupt, the program was closed. He ended up working as a physical education teacher at Bailey Middle School. He said it was “a lot” different than his time at the high school.

“I rolled up my sleeves and went to work,” said Siclari. “I applied football to whatever it was I was teaching in class. Hard work, perseverance, preparation and organization.”

Coach Siclari did that for six years and then got charged with running the in-school suspension program. He said he went in their and laid down the rules. He said football players would come in and watch game film and that having them their helped keep the other students in line.

Siclari retired from teaching at 60 years old. He worked in West Haven for nearly 35 years.

Regarding coaching, Siclari said he coached under Tom Hunt for 13 years and under Ed McCarthy for 20. He said one of his favorite activities was to go scout other teams. This, he said, was before schools exchanged game film.

Siclari said his wife Darcy, a former New Haven police officer, and his daughter Shannon, a sophomore in college, are the loves of his life. When he started his family, he said he began to realize it was time to retire from coaching.

“I told Eddy [McCarthy] after the Shelton game in 2002,” said Siclari. “It was the second game of the season. We beat them and I told Eddy, ‘Eddy, this is it for me – at the end of the season I’m all done.’ We ended up going undefeated. It was a great, great way to go out.”

By Josh LaBella

Voice Reporter

When Kathryn Johnson sees people leaving out old suitcases to be picked up during bulk trash day, she sees an opportunity. Johnson is looking for partners to join her in starting “Kathy’s Suitcases for a Cause.”

The homemaker, baker and crafts-maker said she has lived in West Have for 13 years. She said she sees an opportunity to supply families or individuals in need, such as homeless people or orphan children, with rollaway suitcases and travel locks to give them a secure way to transport their personal belongings.

Johnson said hopes to find people who are willing to donate their space to hold the suitcases or their time deliver them.

“I need a place to store them,” said Johnson. “I also need volunteers to give them out.”

Johnson said she wants to focus primarily on two populations: the homeless and children slated for foster care.

“People in West Haven would be the priority,” said Johnson. “People that are very much in need. The next thing would be children that are in transition – being adopted or moved to a different foster home.”

Johnson said she got the idea in the spring when she saw suitcases on the side of the road for bulk pickup day. She said she asked herself how they could be better utilized. The homemaker said she sees a lot of people walking by her home with carriages that hold their belongings.

“They are picking up cans,” said Johnson. “They have their clothes in plastic bags.”

In reference to children in foster care, Johnson said she was in the foster care when she was a child. She said she thinks it would be nice to give children something to carry their belongings in when they are uprooted.

“You don’t know until you are actually in that situation,” said Johnson.

According to Johnson, she also wants to collect donated personal hygiene products for people in need. She is considering filling each suitcase with them.

“I just want to get this thing going,” said Johnson. “I don’t think anyone has really thought of this.”

Johnson said whether they partner with the Connecticut State Department of Children and Families or nonprofits in the area, she just wants to make a difference.

Johnson said anyone interested in helping her in this effort can call her at (203) 361-4789.

By Michael P. Walsh

Special to the Voice

Mayor Nancy R. Rossi presented Aniello Cappetta with a blue jacket embroidered with his new title, Italian American of the Year, as part of festivities marking West Haven’s 21st annual Columbus Day Celebration on the steps of City Hall on Friday.

Cappetta, who owned and operated Cappetta’s Italian Imports in Allingtown for nearly a quarter century, was showered with words of praise from Rossi for his “inspiring contributions in shaping the tapestry of our Italian American community and the narrative of our diverse city.”

At the 20-minute ceremony, Cappetta, 71, received a General Assembly citation from state Reps. Dorinda Borer, D-West Haven, Charles J. Ferraro, R-West Haven, and Michael A. DiMassa, D-West Haven, on behalf of the city’s delegation.

He also received an official statement from senior adviser Jimmy Tickey on behalf of Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz and an Italian flag from Paul M. Frosolone, president of the West Haven Italian American Civic Association, and Josephine Matera, former president of the association’s Ladies Auxiliary.

The West Haven Columbus Day Committee recognizes an Italian resident, or couple, each year who personifies service in the city’s close-knit Italian American community.

“Thank you to the mayor; it’s a big honor for me,” said Cappetta, who lives on Pagano Court, a cul-de-sac off Jones Street near First Avenue. “Thank you, America, and thank you, West Haven!”

As the sound of Italian music filled the air during the late morning cultural event in honor of the Italian explorer, Cappetta saluted his ancestry with dozens of his closest friends and loved ones, along with an array of city officials, members of the Allingtown and West Shore fire departments, and descendants of folks from the old country clad in red, white and green.

“I’m very proud of my father,” an emotional Donato Cappetta told the crowd before exclaiming, “God bless America!”

Rossi also presented a mayoral citation to Aniello Cappetta, who, in addition to his son, was joined by his daughter Rosa Armellino and four of his grandchildren, all waving Italian flags.

Before an Italian blessing from Michael Abbott, director of ministry at Notre Dame High School, Liz Levy sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” and the Italian national anthem, “II Canto degli Italiani.” The renditions were followed by a greeting from mayoral Executive Assistant Lou Esposito, the master of ceremonies.

Rossi then delivered heartwarming remarks about Cappetta, saying: “Your indomitable spirit and meritorious good works are a testament to the promise of America. You are living proof of the American dream!”

Cappetta, one of 13 siblings, was born and raised in the town of Acerno in the province of Salerno, Italy. He served in the Italian air force and also worked as a carpenter.

In 1970, at the age of 22, Cappetta and his wife, the former Palma Malangone, also a native of Acerno, left their home in southwestern Italy and came to America for “a better life and to start a family.”

After the couple settled in New Haven, he worked for a construction company in West Haven.

In 1972, Cappetta and his wife opened their first restaurant, Mama Lucia’s in Ansonia, becoming the first family members to open a food establishment.

The couple sold the restaurant in 1976. For the next eight years, they worked in housekeeping at the Hospital of Saint Raphael in New Haven while raising their four children: Luigi, Rosa, Donato and Maria.

The couple moved their brood to West Haven in 1983.

A year later, Cappetta and his wife started a new venture and opened LP Video on Route 1 in Allingtown. The store, which sold Italian American films, introduced the couple to the great people of West Haven, he said.

In 1989, the couple returned to the food service business and opened Cappetta’s Italian Imports across the street from LP Video. The business at 188 Boston Post Road started as a deli and specialized in food items from Italy.

A few years later, Cappetta’s expanded to offer pizza and other Italian specialty foods and provide catering services.

Before long, the business that Cappetta and his wife built in the heart of Allingtown became “the go-to spot” for home-style and hard-to-find Italian foods.

Although he handed it down to sons Donato and Luigi in 2013, Cappetta, whose wife passed away in 2016, still spends time at the neighborhood institution, now Cappetta’s Italian Imports Pizza and Catering.

Cappetta’s propensity for community service includes serving as an ambassador of his rich heritage.

He is a longtime member of Club Napoli in Northford and the Italian American Club of East Haven.

Cappetta’s name will join the 20 previous Columbus Day recipients on a plaque in City Hall.

Josh LaBella

Voice Reporter

Since the fall of 2013, Chris Haynes has guided University of New Haven students into and through the study of political science. He said he became an educator because he saw the fulfillment his mother got from the profession.

A Hawaii native, Haynes said he got his Masters of Business Administration from Texas Christian University but then went to University of California, Riverside to get his doctorate in political science – something he said he had always been passionate about.

The political science professor said his mother was a high school English teacher at a school where it was uncommon for students to go to four-year colleges after graduating.

“I would always come in contact with students that would come back to her years after graduation,” said Haynes. “They’d be so thankful. You could tell how much of an impact she’d had.”

Haynes said his mother inspired students to go to college. He said he was drawn to education because of how much meaning and satisfaction his mother derived from her work.

When he graduated with his MBA, Haynes said he worked at a department store chain’s “central office” but found it was not for him. He decided to try something new and what came of that was his Ph.D. in political science.

“I was surprised political science is different from politics,” said Haynes. “You quickly find out that it is the study of politics. It’s explaining it and describing it. Not necessarily what’s right and wrong – those normative questions. But positive questions about what it is and how it works.”

Haynes said his particular area of interest in political science is public opinion and voting. He said he finds studying how emotion, such as anxiety and fear, impact people voting habits interesting.

The professor said he came to Connecticut to teach during a tough time in the job market. According to Haynes, he was drawn to UNH’s “teaching-centric” style.

Once at the university, Haynes started a Model United Nations program – something he had done at UC Riverside. He said after getting support from the dean of arts and sciences they turned it into a class.

“It’s gone really well,” said Haynes. “The students are great at it. We’ve won a bunch of top-scoring awards at the National Model UN Conference. Most importantly, the student outcomes for those who have been through the program is really high.”

Haynes said they have alumni working on Capitol Hill and in the State Department. Haynes also started the Mayor’s Advisory Commission during Mayor Ed O’Brien’s administration in order to further collaboration between the university and the city it resides in.

“I thought it was an ethical responsibility of our university to involve itself in building and helping the community,” said Haynes. “In a way, it was my belief that really drove me. But it also made possible a lot of internships and opportunities for our students and for the university itself by having this relationship and partnership.”

The group spearheaded the creation of WestFest and has hosted mayoral candidate debates. He said it has been a fruitful relationship and exit polling has shown approval for the university to be in the high 80’s and low 90’s.

“That’s been our goal — to show the community that the university is really invested in it. It’s not just that school on a hill,” he said.

Haynes said trips to France, Geneva Switzerland and the United Nations with his students have been some of the highlights of his career.

“My most important memories are the students,” he said. “To think about their journey and the challenges that a lot of them faced at the beginning and then to see them blossom.”

According to Haynes, he enjoys getting calls from former students informing him of their progress in their own careers. He said he is a student focused professor who wants to develop their skills so they can be competitive in the real world.

“Sometimes in college it can get a little bit detached, because it is this safe refuge where you can just learn,” said Haynes. “For me, I try to infuse these real-world situations into the classroom.”