Courtesy of Daviel Schulman
Chris Campbell, the new Director of Race and Ethnicity Programs at Connecticut College, has lived in New London since the age of three. He attended Nathan Hale Elementary School, Harbor Elementary School (recently closed), and Bennie Dover Jackson Middle School. After beginning at New London High School, Campbell transferred to Ella T. Grasso Southeastern Technical High School in Groton. Campbell emphasized the “close-knit” nature of the New London community: “I’m still friends with some people I went to kindergarten with.”
Community engagement runs deep in Campbell’s roots. “I come from a public service family,” he shared. His relatives are police officers, members of the military, teachers, and other public service workers. He was taught to always “do what you can to help your neighbor.”
Campbell initially wanted to pursue a career in sports science. However, he realized that education in New London was his calling. Campbell enjoyed volunteering in classrooms, tutoring, and babysitting his neighbors and wished to remain in his home city. He graduated from the University of Connecticut with a B.A. in English Literature, B.S. in Special Education, and M.A. in Educational Psychology. Campbell’s interest in special education stems from his family, as his younger brother and sister both have disabilities. Noticing the disparities in special education through their experiences, Campbell was inspired to pursue the field himself.
For the next ten years, Campbell taught special education in the New London Public Schools (NLPS), describing the experience as “eye-opening.” He feels that teaching made him “more sympathetic” to the challenges that teachers face. His position as an alumnus of the NLPS helped him connect with his students on a deeper level, as he understood what it was like to grow up in New London: “It says a lot to the students in New London to see people that grew up here come back and choose to work in New London…it’s powerful,” Campbell expressed.
At the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, Campbell co-founded the nonprofit organization Whalers Helping Whalers. The organization provides meals and grocery items for community members in an effort to combat food insecurity in New London. Whalers Helping Whalers has expanded to distribute other necessities, such as diapers and school supplies. Founding and working for Whalers gave Campbell a “new perspective on nonprofits” and made him more aware of the needs of New London residents.
Similar to most New London residents, Campbell viewed Connecticut College as the “school up on the hill” before he became associated with the institution. Aside from the fact that his older cousin graduated from Conn in 1999, Campbell did not know anyone from the College. That changed when Campbell decided to leave public education in February of 2022. He knew he wanted to stay in New London, and connected with Patrick Lynch and Rebecca McCue from Conn’s Holleran Center for Community Action. They asked Campbell to join the center’s staff as Assistant Director of the Program in Community Action (PICA) in October of 2022. “Seeing the work that Holleran did dispelled a lot of those notions [about the College] I had as a person growing up in New London…Now I’m able to see that there are offices on campus trying to bring students into the community, wanting to collaborate, wanting to give back, and that was really huge for me,” Campbell expressed. He appreciated the opportunity to support full-time New London programming and play a part in bridging the gap between the College and the local community.
In the spring of 2023, Campbell co-taught part of the PICA gateway course, “New London Community Practicum,” with Megan Griffin, also Assistant Director of PICA. Together, Campbell and Griffin coordinated students’ community placements and facilitated class discussions about the ethics and methods of community engagement. Campbell enjoyed sharing his experiences with students and enabling them to give back to the New London community.
During his past year at Conn, Campbell assisted with the Enrich and Genesis Mentoring Programs, Horizons Beyond High School, and the New London High School Voice 4 Change Grant. These programs intend to expose New London middle and high school students to the career paths and post-secondary education options available to them. Conn students visit the public schools and facilitate activities with the students, providing them with the tools to pursue their passions. Campbell noted that there are not a lot of New London natives who attend Connecticut College. The initial goal of Horizons Beyond High School was to help New London students matriculate into Conn after high school and “stay local.”
This past July of 2023, Campbell stepped into the role of Director of Race and Ethnicity Programs (REP) at Conn. He enjoys working with students “who look like [him]” in addition to his “awesome team” of staff members, including Interim Dean of Institutional Equity and Inclusion Nakia Hamlett. Campbell shared that this new role “allowed [him] to be innovative and think outside the box.” Considering the campus protests last semester, Campbell feels that Conn is at a pivotal moment in time and positive change is imminent. As Director of REP, Campbell hopes to increase collaboration between Unity House and other parts of campus, prioritize the sustainability of his initiatives, and foster the partnership between the College and the community.
When asked how his position as someone who grew up in New London and now works at Conn has influenced his view of the relationship between the city and the College, Campbell underscored the importance of and need for the relationship. He explained that New London has so many resources to offer people at Conn, and likewise, Conn has resources to offer New Londoners. The relationship between New London anc Conn has the potential to be “mutually beneficial” and we must take full advantage of all that the city has to offer, according to Campbell.
There are a variety of ways in which Conn students may participate in Race and Ethnicity Programs. The Genesis Mentoring Program pairs upperclass first-generation and/or students of color with first-year students at Conn. Campbell teaches a “How College Works” course on Tuesday evenings for first-year students as well. Unity House hosts several events each week, promoted via the REP newsletter and Instagram account (@cc_raceethnicityprograms). Unity House recently celebrated its 50th anniversary during Fall Weekend. The house continues to serve as a safe and welcoming space for all students on campus. Campbell shared that he wishes to support students in whatever they need and is open to student input about ways to enrich Unity House programming for everyone: “If I can’t do it, hopefully I can connect you with someone who can.”
