Santana Miller joins the Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy as a Program Assistant. She brings a diverse background in higher education, program administration, and youth services. She holds a master’s degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs from the University of Connecticut and undergraduate degrees in Criminal Justice and Spanish from the University of Georgia.
With experience in supporting at-risk populations and facilitating educational opportunities, Santana is passionate about fostering equitable access to resources and services. Her previous roles have allowed her to develop strong skills in program management, student advising, and community engagement. She looks forward to leveraging her expertise to support the Institute’s impactful initiatives. Santana hails from Port Antonio, Jamaica, has lived in Georgia and now calls Connecticut home.
Irvine Peck’s-Agaya, is the Program Administrator for the Children with Incarcerated Parents (CIP) Initiative at the Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy (IMRP). She plans, organizes, and coordinates the daily operations of the department.
Ms. Peck’s-Agaya’s commitment to advance equitable, inclusive public policies and restorative justice practices have largely been influenced by her experience with an incarcerated loved one at a young age. She co-founded Transforming, Reinventing, And Prospering (T.R.AP.) House, a business incubator seeking to help former incarcerated individuals establish legal ventures in Hartford, CT as an undergraduate student at Wesleyan University. At T.R.A.P. House, Ms. Peck’s-Agaya utilized social entrepreneurship and teaching as forms of progressive, humane, and research-based solution to recidivism. Her Bachelor’s degree is from Wesleyan University and she has a Master’s in Higher Education and Student Affairs from the University of Connecticut. While in graduate school, Ms. Peck’s-Agaya served on several committees including Anti-Racism Professional Development Committee and facilitated Race and Equity dialogues within the Office for Diversity and Inclusion.
Ms. Peck’s-Agaya is from Limoges, France, but finds her roots in Gabon and Haiti. Fluent in French and Haitian Creole, she was educated in Boynton Beach, Fl and currently resides in Hartford.
Andrew Clark is the Director of the Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy (IMRP) at Central Connecticut State University. Mr. Clark is currently head of the IMRP project team administering competitive grants that aim to provide positive interventions for children of incarcerated parents. In addition, Mr. Clark is Acting Executive Director of the Connecticut Sentencing Commission, which seeks to review current and proposed legislation to promote effective, balanced, and responsible criminal sentencing policies. He is also Project Director for a grant from the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration that is being utilized to implement the state’s Alvin W. Penn Racial Profiling Law. This project has been titled the Racial Profiling Prohibition Project. Mr. Clark is also assisting in the implementation of the Results First Initiative in CT.
Prior to coming to CCSU, Mr. Clark worked at the Connecticut General Assembly from 1999-2005. He served as clerk of the Appropriations and Transportation Committees, and deputy clerk of the Finance, Revenue, and Bonding Committee.
Amjad Khan is a Financial Analyst at the Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy (IMRP) at Central Connecticut State University. Mr. Khan assists with the financial administration of IMRP grants, contracts and legislative appropriations. Additionally, Mr. Khan oversees data management and entry for the Children with Incarcerated Parents Initiative.
Mr. Khan is originally from Tanzania, East Africa and came to the United States for university. Before graduating from CCSU in 2005, Mr. Khan worked as a Student Worker at CCSU’s Grants Office, which maintains revenue and expenditure records for federal, state and local grants and prepares financial reports and statements for all external grant awards. After completing his Bachelors degree, Mr. Khan went on to work for a Manufacturing Company in Istanbul, Turkey and returned to the United States as a permanent resident in October 2008.
James M. Conway, PhD, is a professor of Psychological Science at Central Connecticut State University. He has been head of the evaluation team for the IMRP’s Children with Incarcerated Parents Initiative since 2008, evaluating a variety of interventions for CIP. His research is also focused on children of incarcerated parents, e.g., on community-level factors affecting children and families.
Dr. Conway has a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from SUNY Binghamton and received his PhD in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from the University of Connecticut. He has been on the faculty at CCSU since 1998, and prior to that was on the Psychology faculty at Seton Hall University for six years.