When a Connecticut mayor took a walk with his family to a local ice cream parlor over the summer, he ran into something he had not seen before.
Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam said he ran into the new president of Trinity College, Dan Lugo, and his wife, TinaMarie, who also had gone to Capital Ice Cream in the city.
“I think he has hit the ground running to engrain himself in the fabric of the community,” Arulampalam said of Lugo, and about seeing the new president out and about in the city. “He has large shoes to fill. He has been a burst of energy, a really innovative thinker.”
The ice cream visit was in July, on what Arulampalam said was one of Lugo’s first weekends in the city. Arulampalam’s reference to the “large shoes” was to former Trinity College president, Joanne Berger-Sweeney, who was its 22nd leader, served for nearly 11 years in the post, and was well known for strengthening the school’s relationship with the city.
Trinity College President Dan Lugo, right, with Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam at the mayor’s night out. (Nick Caito)
Lugo came to Hartford from Queens University of Charlotte, where he had been president since 2019. Before that, he served in leadership roles at Colby College, Franklin & Marshall College, and Carleton College.
Lugo will be inaugurated as the 23rd president of Trinity College on Saturday, Oct. 18. The ceremony will be livestreamed.
Lugo, a first-generation college graduate who grew up on Long Island, also earned his law degree from the University of Minnesota School of Law, and has worked as an attorney, but his career track changed because he “wanted to do something that provided more public good, and significant impact in the world,” he said.
“I’ve always been one to … support and empower others,” he said. “I needed something more for impacting society.”
That is part of what led him to choose Trinity, he said.
“I’m betting on Hartford; there is a lot of good going on,” Lugo said, noting Trinity as the “gold standard” for American education, which will continue.
In part that choice also come from the outstanding liberal arts education and high level of academic and research standards Trinity has in place for faculty and students, Lugo said.
“Our commitment to that is unshakeable,” he said. “We are never changing that model.”
Lugo said Trinity students “are passionate about learning” and the college seeks those who “are incredibly curious,” are intellectual “risk takers” who will be “ethical leaders making a positive impact, change agents for the better.”
“Curious, creative and motivated lifelong learners,” he said, students who can “connect their education to the real world.
Lugo said that, since he grew up in the Northeast, coming to Hartford and Connecticut was “a return to the familiar” and that he had always been impressed with Trinity “from afar,” including for its deep scholarly research, “amazing faculty” and students involved in the creation of knowledge.
He said there are many opportunities for him and the college to become involved in the fabric of the city, including with neighborhood groups, hospitals and other organizations.
The college has an alumni base of about 30,000, Lugo said.
“Trinity is so excited for this moment,” he said. “The energy at Trinity is fantastic.”
Arulampalam said Lugo has already shown his interest and commitment to the city. For example, Lugo inquired about the city’s proposed $90 million applied artificial intelligence center targeted for the North Crossing redevelopment where a long-abandoned, data processing center near Dunkin’ Park.
Trinity College President Dan Lugo, second from right, at the mayor’s night out. (Nick Caito)
“As soon as he came in, he had read about it, and asked how (Trinity) could play a role, and was interested in his students getting the best training,” the mayor said.
Lugo understands the significance of the proposed project, mutual growth and of “expanding for the future of the workforce,” Arulampalam said. “He thinks really innovatively, there are a variety of ideas he is bringing.”
“He really is trying to understand the community,” Arulampalam said. “I have seen him at a ton of community events … looking for way to engage.”
While he was at Queens University, Lugo had worked to “deepen its connection with the local community of Charlotte,” as well as develop new multidisciplinary academic programs, and to “create an integrated approach to diversity, equity and inclusion that begins on campus and extends into the local community,” according to Trinity.
Lugo said he thinks Hartford can be a “true college town” though there is more to do.
“Trinity has been at the table for decades,” he said. “I think Hartford is on the upswing, we don’t want to miss this moment.”
Lisa Bisaccia, chair of both the Trinity Presidential Search Committee and the Board of Trustees, has noted Lugo brings with him “a wealth of expertise and years of academic leadership that will serve Trinity well as we enter our third century.”
Trinity College President Dan Lugo. (Nick Caito)
Lugo also served as vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid at Franklin & Marshall from 2011 to 2015, a time in which it saw a 45% increase in applications and a more academically talented and diverse class, according to Trinity.
According to Trinity, among its commitments in Hartford have been:
It has partnered for 27 years to act as host for DreamCamp, a summer program for more than 300 local youth.
Trinity, in 2024, added the Bicentennial-Hartford Scholarship and the Bisaccia Family Scholarship to a host of scholarships for local youth to attend Trinity.
The college supports the Boys and Girls Club of Hartford; Berger-Sweeney received their Jan-Gee McCollam Champion of Young Women Award this month.
Hartford Magnet Trinity College Academy, Trinity’s neighborhood magnet school, has programs at the college and is under the Center for Hartford Engagement and Research, which has faculty, staff and student community engagement programs.
Trinity sponsors a neighborhood child care center, which has grown into a valuable resource for working families in the community.
Also, cultural events draw thousands such as SambaFest, Cinestudio, and the Hip Hop Festival.
