Governor William A. O'Neill Endowed Chair

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The Governor William A. O'Neill Endowed Chair in Public Policy and Practical Politics was established in 2000 by Connecticut's Board of Governors for Higher Education and the Connecticut State University Board of Trustees to honor the late Governor William A. O'Neill, who served from 1980 to 1991.

The O'Neill Endowed Chair seeks to promote an understanding of the history, structure, people and policies of our State's government for both students and the larger community. The Chair's programs include active archival and oral history projects and collaborations with Central's Political Science department, History department, University Library, Media Services department and the United States Library of Congress.

The O'Neill Endowed Chair links CPPSR to students and faculty through a wide range of academic and applied research programs. The Chair Holder is a public figure recognized for an outstanding contribution to the understanding and shaping of public affairs in Connecticut.

Current Governor William A. O'Neill Endowed Chair

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Gabe Rosenberg is the current Chair Holder of the Governor William A. O’Neill Endowed Chair in Public Policy and Practical Politics since 2024. The O’Neill Endowed Chair is housed in the Center for Community Engagement and Social Research (CCESR), formerly known as the Center for Public Policy and Social Research until merged with the Office of Community Engagement at Central in 2022.

Mr. Rosenberg’s appointment reflects the Center’s renewed focus on community engagement, given his extensive career in public service. Gabe Rosenberg is an experienced Political, Communications, Legislative, and Election Law professional with a history of working at a senior staff level in electoral politics and government.

Rosenberg graduated from the University of Massachusetts with BAs in Political Science and Social Thought and Political Economy, from Southern Connecticut State University with an MS in Political Science, and from the University of Connecticut School of Law with a JD.

After years of experience in political communications and strategy with electoral campaigns, he spent five years as the Communications Director for the Connecticut Speaker of the House and the House Democratic Caucus, before joining the Office of the Secretary of the State as the Communications Director and eventually General Counsel and Chief of Staff.

Honoring the public service legacy of the first Holder of the Chair, Governor William A. O’Neill, Mr. Rosenberg, as the sixth Chair Holder, will instruct within the Political Science Department and actively engage Central faculty and students in the public policy outreach of the Chair and Center.

Past Chair Holders

Edwin Vargas

Former State Representative Edwin Vargas Jr. of Hartford served as the Governor William A. O’Neill Endowed Chair in Public Policy and Practical Politics at Central from 2023-2024.

Vargas’s responsibilities included teaching; organizing and participating in public lectures and campus forums that address issues of public policy and practical politics; facilitating University collaborations with state governmental leadership on policy initiatives; supporting CCESR outreach and programming; and mentoring students, especially those pursuing a public service career path.

Vargas’s career in public service spans more than 45 years. From 1972 to 2007, he worked in the Hartford Public Schools system, for which he taught American History at the high school level; supervised the Mathematics Lab; and served as lead teacher at the North End Adult School, which included teaching English to immigrant students.

During and after his years as an educator, Vargas served in several leadership roles in support of his fellow teachers, including president, chief negotiator, and grievance chair for the Hartford Federation of Teachers; executive vice president of the American Federation of Teachers Connecticut; and president of the Greater Hartford Labor Council for the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations.

Vargas was elected to the Connecticut House of Representatives in 2012 and served the Sixth House District for five terms. He was appointed deputy speaker of the state House in 2020.

Throughout his career, Vargas has highlighted his Puerto Rican roots and has held various state and national leadership positions that emphasize his commitment to the Latino community. Among other roles, he has been president of the National Congress for Puerto Rican Rights, Public Policy Chair of the National Puerto Rican Coalition, and board vice chair of the Center for Latino Progress (formerly the Connecticut Puerto Rican Forum).

Donald Defronzo

Former Mayor of New Britain, State Senator and State Commissioner, Donald Defronzo, served as the Governor William A. O’Neill Endowed Chair in Public Policy and Practical Politics at Central from 2016-2022. As part of this position, DeFronzo taught a class in government relations and worked in the Center for Public Policy and Social Research on various projects and policy forums.

As the O’Neill Chair holder DeFronzo also worked with Central’s Political Science department, History department, University Library and Media Services department to encourage public service and engage students in the community at the Center for Public Policy. He praised Central’s continuing efforts to encourage public service and community involvement at the Center for Community Engagement and Social Research. He also oversaw the awarding of over $200,000 dollars in scholarships to 142 students through the Governor O'Neill Public Service EOP Scholarship Program, which serves under-represented and economically disadvantaged students.

He also played a key advisory role in collaborative projects with the Institute for the Study of Crime and Justice, which included a virtual forum on the legalization of recreational cannabis in Connecticut and a survey-research project on community perceptions of public safety in the North Oak neighborhood of New Britain. His efforts also supported the Center's collaborative efforts with the John Lewis Institute for Social Justice, which included a wide-ranging discussion about civics, citizen responsibility and political action with John Lewis Scholars.

From 2011 to 2015, he served as Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Administrative Services. He has also worked for six years as Executive Director of the nonprofit community action agency Human Resources Agency of New Britain, and for 17 years with the Connecticut Office of Policy and Management (OPM), where he was responsible for coordinative work in planning and policy development.