The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Saxena joins Torrington Savings Bank
TORRINGTON — Torrington Savings Bank recently welcomed Alan Saxena as Chief Risk Officer and Senior Vice President to the bank’s management team.
Saxena comes to Torrington Savings with over 20 years of multi-industry experience including banking, consulting, aviation and not-for-profit. Most recently, he worked at Citizens Financial Group in the Central Risk team on areas including enterprise risk, compliance and model risk.
In his role at Torrington Savings Bank, Saxena will be responsible for setting up an Enterprise Risk Management system with oversight over Internal Audits and Compliance within a centralized risk function.
Saxena is a graduate of George Washington University in Washington DC where he earned his masters degree in Business Administration, concentrating in Finance. He holds an undergraduate degree in economics and accounting and is also a certified Project Management Professional (PMP).
John Janco, President and CEO at Torrington Savings Bank stated, “We are very pleased to have Alan join our Executive leadership team. His multi-disciplinary background in various industries will be very beneficial for our clients and the bank as we strive to maintain a strong balance sheet with minimal risk while offering new products and services.”
EdAdvance hosts Early Childhood Providers’ Roundtable
LITCHFIELD — EdAdvance’s Early Childhood and Family Programs hosted the first in a series of Early Childhood Roundtables focused on meeting the needs of diverse learners in northwest CT. The Roundtable was held Feb. 28 at the
agency’s headquarters in Litchfield.
EdAdvance is the Regional Educational Service Center (RESC) serving western Connecticut, whose mission is to promote the success of school districts and communities.
Early childhood providers, teachers, and program directors united to discuss priorities in the areas of professional development and providing quality services for preschoolers with specialized needs.
Dr. Jeffrey Kitching, Executive Director at EdAdvance, welcomed participants. “EdAdvance is committed to working with early childhood providers to achieve the best possible outcomes, including kindergarten readiness, for all early learners. Our early childhood specialists provide expert professional development and training programs, consultation, and technical assistance to providers throughout the region, including preparation for accreditation by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC),” he said.
Michelle Cook, CT State Representative (Torrington) presented an overview of early childhood related legislative agenda items. Featured speaker Andrea Brinnel, CT State Department of Education Special Education Coordinator, updated participants on upcoming professional learning initiatives at RESCs throughout Connecticut to assist private and public school preschool teachers in serving young children with specialized needs. One attendee summed up her perspectives on the session as “...not only did they listen to our concerns and needs, but they are also ready to create solutions that truly support them.”
The next Early Childhood Roundtable is scheduled for Tuesday, April 30, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. at EdAdvance’s Litchfield office. For more information on this initiative and Early Childhood and Family Programs, contact Michelle Anderson, Director, at andersonm@edadvance.org or 860-567-0863 x1179.
Foundation celebrates 2018 accomplishments
BURLINGTON — Before a gathering of board members, past leadership and staff at Main Street Community Foundation’s Annual Meeting, the foundation celebrated 2018, which saw the distribution of $1.7 million in grants and scholarships to benefit the residents of Bristol, Burlington, Plainville, Plymouth, Southington and Wolcott through programs and community leadership initiatives. More than $17.3 million has been distributed since the foundation’s establishment in 1995.
The foundation also received $1.4 million in contributions in 2018 and 11 new funds were established at the Foundation by local individuals, families and organizations to support causes they care about to better their communities.
“Our local communities have very generous residents,” said Susan Sadecki, the Foundation’s President and CEO. “They have established a total of 236 funds and made contributions that fuel these grants to their favorite nonprofits, their towns and their most passionate causes, like education, healthcare and the environment. We are honored to help our donors carry out their wishes and fulfill their charitable goals.”
The Main Street Community Foundation also elected new officers at its annual meeting. John D. Scarritt handed off the gavel of board chairman to Marguerite P. Fletcher. Serving alongside Fletcher are two vice-chairpersons: Valerie A. DePaolo and Scott Fournier. Moving into the role of secretary is David J. Aldieri and the assistant secretary will be Kristine J. Dargenio. The new treasurer is Michael J. Brault.
In addition, two directors, Mark Malley of Plymouth and Jennifer Scully of Wolcott, were re-elected to the board. The Community Foundation Board consists of community leaders charged with ensuring donors’ intentions are fulfilled in perpetuity.
The Main Street Community Foundation is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for both present and future generations in the communities served by encouraging and promoting gift planning, prudent stewardship of assets, effective grantmaking and community leadership. A nonprofit public charity, created by private citizens, the foundation works with donors in Bristol, Burlington, Plainville, Plymouth, Southington and Wolcott who wish to build permanent charitable endowments to support their communities. Since its founding in 1995, the foundation has provided over $17.3 million in grants and scholarships.
Webster Bank recognized as a World’s Best Bank
WATERBURY – Webster Bank was recently recognized among the World’s Best Banks in Forbes’ inaugural World’s Best Banks list. Only 60 banks in the United States were recognized for this honor.
In collaboration with analytics firm Statista, Forbes’ first annual list of World’s Best Banks is based on an independent survey from a vast sample of more than 65,000 bank customers from 23 different countries. Participants were asked to identify all banks where they have opened checking or savings accounts and then asked to rate the banks in the following areas: Trust, Terms & Conditions, Customer Services, Digital Services, and Financial Advice.
Since its founding in 1935, Webster bank has expanded to become a leading regional bank in the Northeast with more than $27 billion in assets and 157 banking centers from greater New York City to Boston.