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Bergen Community College President Eric M. Friedman, Ph.D., and Board of Trustees Treasurer Patrick Fletcher.
PARAMUS, N.J. – Bergen Community College Board of Trustees Treasurer Patrick Fletcher has received the Ronald D. Winthers Community College Trustee Leadership Award from the New Jersey Council of County Colleges, which honors an individual who “exemplifies visionary trustee leadership at the local, state and national levels.” Fletcher represents the second Bergen trustee to earn the honor in the last three years, with Chair Dorothy Blakeslee receiving the award in 2024. The NJCCC recognized Fletcher as part of the New Jersey Community College Awards banquet that took place during New Jersey Community College Opportunity Summit in Atlantic City last month. The NJCCC’s signature awards program recognizes the state’s top community college faculty, staff, students, trustees and partners each year.
“Patrick Fletcher exemplifies the very best of community college trustee leadership,” NJCCC President Aaron Fichtner, Ph.D., said. “Throughout his career in education and through his service to Bergen Community College, he has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to students, thoughtful leadership, and a deep belief in the transformative power of education. We are proud to recognize Patrick with the Ronald D. Winthers Community College Trustee Leadership Award.”
Fletcher joined Bergen’s Board of Trustees in 2017 and has served as treasurer since 2018. As a trustee and the current Bergen County Executive Superintendent of Schools, Fletcher represents an important liaison for the College and county government officials. Additionally, he frequently accompanies Bergen President Eric M. Friedman, Ph.D., on legislative and advocacy visits, lending his expertise and voice to championing the needs of community college students.
“I will treasure this award,” Fletcher said at the College’s June Board of Trustees meeting. “I would like to say thank you to my fellow trustees because without your support, there is no way we can achieve these types of awards. Nor could we do it without the faculty and staff who help to provide the wonderful opportunity for our students to grow and learn.”
Before retiring as the longtime River Dell Regional School District superintendent of schools, Fletcher held leadership roles in the Rutherford, Closter, Englewood Cliffs, and Glen Rock school districts. For his efforts in supporting student success, Fletcher received the 2014 New Jersey Association of School Administrators Northern Superintendent of the Year award and the 2018 Distinguished Service Award. He earned a B.A. from Lafayette College and an M.A. from Seton Hall University.
Based in Paramus, Bergen Community College (www.bergen.edu), a public two-year coeducational college, enrolls more than 24,000 students at locations in Paramus, the Philip Ciarco Jr. Learning Center in Hackensack and Bergen Community College at the Meadowlands in Lyndhurst. The College offers associate degree, certificate and continuing education programs in a variety of fields. More students graduate from Bergen than any other community college in the state.
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