Hudson County Community College President Dr. Christopher Reber Named NJBIA 2025 Executive of the Year

October 1, 2025

Dr. Christopher Reber

Hudson County Community College (HCCC) President Dr. Christopher Reber is honored with the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA) 2025 Executive of the Year Award for outstanding leadership, vision, and positive impact on businesses and communities in the Garden State.

October 1, 2025, Jersey City, NJ – Since taking the helm to lead Hudson County Community College (HCCC) in 2018, Dr. Christopher Reber has made student success, accessibility, inclusion, and advocacy the hallmarks of his governance. His commitment to fostering a collaborative environment that makes the College a great place to learn and work has earned national accolades.

New Jersey Business Magazine is honoring Dr. Reber with the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA) 2025 Executive of the Year Award that recognizes outstanding leadership, vision, passion, and positive impact on businesses and communities in the Garden State.

“The 2025 Awards for Excellence recognize four executives and eight companies that have improved New Jersey’s quality of life in outstanding ways,” said New Jersey Business Magazine Editor-in-Chief Anthony Birritteri. “Powered by the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA), the awards honor select employers from NJBIA’s membership for their remarkable achievements.”

Early on, Dr. Reber initiated and supported several nationally acclaimed programs that promote academic, cultural, and upward social and economic mobility for students and the entire community.

Examples include:

  • Development of the HCCC Hudson Helps Resource Center, a compendium of wraparound services, programs, and resources that address students’ basic needs beyond the classroom to promote student retention and success;
  • Creation of the nationally acclaimed Hudson Scholars Program that provides proactive advisement, financial stipends, and early academic intervention models to support students facing financial challenges, language barriers, employment concerns, family responsibilities, and other whole life barriers to completing their college education;
  • Membership in Achieving the Dream, the national reform network of high-performing community colleges dedicated to using data and best practices to ensure student success and degree completion;
  • Creation of the President’s Advisory Council on Institutional Engagement and Excellence (PACE) and HCCC Office of Institutional Engagement and Excellence to oversee and advance initiatives that ensure the success of all students;
  • Partnering with the Hudson County Department of Family Services and Reintegration for the Justice-Involved Undergraduate Success and Training (JUSTice) Program – the only program in the United States that offers a virtual county jail-based degree opportunity. HCCC faculty deliver virtual instruction, while Student Success Coaches provide daily on-site support to incarcerated individuals; and,
  • Working with former New Jersey Governor James McGreevey’s New Jersey Reentry Corporation to provide previously incarcerated citizens with academic and workforce credentials for employment in high-demand fields.

Dr. Reber has led and supported a myriad of workforce development partnerships and agreements with local corporations and trade unions to educate talented employees in high-priority occupations that fuel the regional and statewide economies. These include:

  • A partnership with Eastern Millwork, Inc. that resulted in the Holz Technik Dual Education Apprenticeship program that provides engineering training and debt-free college degrees for STEM-talented high school students;
  • The Gateway to Innovation program that builds career pathways in finance and technology funded by JPMorgan Chase and federal grants;
  • Dual enrollment/apprenticeship programs with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 164, and International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 825; and,
  • Participation as a partner in the New Jersey Council of County Colleges – New Jersey Business & Industry Association “NJ Pathways to Career Opportunities: Aligning Education to Build an Innovative Workforce” initiative.

Dr. Reber tirelessly advocates community college and higher education priorities on local, statewide and federal levels. He attends and presents at national association meetings including Achieving the Dream, Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF) on whose board he serves, Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, American Association of Community Colleges, Association of Community College Trustees, Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society, and more. Last year, Dr. Reber was an invited participant in two Washington, DC Roundtables with former U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, and former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, where they discussed national career and educational priorities.

Dr. Reber has been recognized with numerous awards, including American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) 2024 Community College CEO of the Year, Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society 2024 Shirley B. Gordon Award of Distinction, Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) 2022 Northeast Region Outstanding CEO Award, Hudson County Chamber of Commerce 2021 Legends Spirit Award, and NJBiz 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022, and 2021 Education Power 50 Award “recognizing the 50 Most Influential New Jersey Educational Leaders,” to name a few.