CCNY President Vincent Boudreau has been recognized as a Power Player in education by PoliticsNY & amNY.
PoliticsNY & amNY are proud to present the annual Power Players in Education list. The 2025 Power Players in Education list looks to honor the dedicated leaders across New York’s vast education system. From presidents of educational institutions to directors of nonprofits to policymakers, the 2025 Power Players in Education are at the forefront of shaping New York’s education landscape and guiding students towards a bright future.
Dr. Vincent G. Boudreau, The City College of New York’s 13th President, is one of the leaders recognized as a Power Player. Boudreau has worked at The City College for over 34 years, starting as an assistant professor in the department of political science. He was the founding dean of the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership (in 2014), became CCNY’s interim president in October 2016, and has served as the confirmed president since November 2017.
Following is PoliticsNY & amNY’s Q&A with Boudreau:
How has the educational landscape changed in recent years and what are your hopes for its future?
Colleges today face real instability in how America values knowledge. Is a college education still important, or should people just learn job-specific skills? More generally, does our society still value the shared social good of a broadly educated society? Are we willing to subject our most important public decisions to rigorous empirical scrutiny? I hope the answer to these questions is “yes” and that a stronger educational system is seen as a path forward.
What do you most enjoy about working in education?
I love developing talent, especially in students who often don’t (yet) know they’re talented. I love the prospect of designing new programs to meet changing economic needs or trying to solve puzzles associated with boosting student resilience and retention. I love the feeling that something a professor says to a student may reorient their whole way of thinking. I love that one student’s success at CCNY can change their whole family’s trajectory.
As this year comes to an end, what are your goals for 2026?
At the moment, it seems like the most important goal for 2026 is defending the institutions of higher education against those that seek to make us smaller, to diminish our impact on society, to deflate our vital research efforts, or to limit the number and kinds of students who can reasonably aspire to a college education and a better life. If I can help hold the line on these vital matters, I’ll be satisfied.
About The City College of New York
Since 1847, The City College of New York has provided a high-quality and affordable education to generations of New Yorkers in a wide variety of disciplines. CCNY embraces its position at the forefront of social change. It is ranked #1 by the Harvard-based Opportunity Insights out of 369 selective public colleges in the United States on the overall mobility index. This measure reflects both access and outcomes, representing the likelihood that a student at CCNY can move up two or more income quintiles. Education research organization Degree Choices ranks CCNY #1 nationally among universities for economic return on investment. In addition, the Center for World University Rankings places CCNY in the top 1.8% of universities worldwide in terms of academic excellence. Labor analytics firm Lightcast puts at $3.2 billion CCNY’s annual economic impact on the regional economy (5 boroughs and 5 adjacent counties) and quantifies the “for dollar” return on investment to students, taxpayers, and society. At City College, more than 16,500 students pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees in eight schools and divisions, driven by significant funded research, creativity, and scholarship. In 2023, CCNY launched its most expansive fundraising campaign ever. The campaign, titled “Doing Remarkable Things Together,” seeks to bring the College’s Foundation to more than $1 billion in total assets in support of the College's mission. CCNY is as diverse, dynamic, and visionary as New York City itself. View CCNY Media Kit.
Jay Mwamba
p: 917.892.0374
e:
jmwamba@ccny.cuny.edu