Joanne Berger-Sweeney, president of Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, has announced her plans to retire in June 2025 at the conclusion of the next academic year.
Dr. Berger-Sweeney became the twenty-second president of Trinity College in 2014, making her the college’s first Black and first woman president since its founding in 1823. She also serves as a professor of neuroscience.
Over the past decade, Dr. Berger-Sweeney’s leadership has led to improved enrollment, retention, and graduation rates. The college has also hired more diverse faculty, expanded its undergraduate financial aid process, doubled its endowment, and made numerous infrastructure improvements since Dr. Berger-Sweeney assumed her presidency. She also oversaw the college’s largest fundraising campaign during her first three years in office, ultimately raising $70 million.
Prior to joining the Trinity College community, Dr. Berger-Sweeney spent four years as dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Tufts University in Massachusetts, where she also served as a professor of biology, with additional appointments in psychology and public health and community medicine. Before Tufts University, she spent two decades with Wellesley College in Massachusetts, holding various positions including professor of biological sciences, director of the neuroscience program, and associate dean. She also held an additional appointment with Harvard University as a lecturer in the department of psychiatry for five years.
Dr. Berger-Sweeney is a graduate of Wellesley College where she majored in psychobiology. She holds a master of public health degree in environmental health sciences from the University of California, Berkeley and a Ph.D. in neurotoxicology from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.