LaGuardia Community College Hires Justin Sloboda as Director of Events

LONG ISLAND CITY, NY— (March 03, 2025) – LaGuardia Community College/CUNY has hired Justin Sloboda as its new Director of Events. Justin who officially begins his role March 3, comes to LaGuardia with extensive experience in public events management and planning with educational and community organizations.

In his role, Justin will serve as the lead point of contact for event planning and campus events. He will work closely with the College’s senior management to enhance the marketability and profitability of campus events and facilities. Justin will also lead the college’s efforts to coordinate various events including Commencement and events on the LaGuardia Community Greenway.

“I am thrilled to be joining LaGuardia,” Justin said. “As a born and bred Queens kid and CUNY alumnus joining LaGuardia Community College feels like coming home in the best possible way.”

Justin hopes to bring the benefits, and lessons learned, from his years of experience running events in higher education to LaGuardia.

“I truly enjoy working with students and the campus community, and I want to foster that collaboration in this new role,” Justin said.

Reporting to Chief of Staff Nayelli Valencia Turrent, Justin will also develop and manage a comprehensive events calendar that aligns with the College’s objectives and priorities. Justin will also coordinate all aspects of event logistics, including venue selection, budget management, vendor negotiations, and on-site coordination, to ensure events are executed seamlessly, adhering to timelines and quality standards.

Prior to joining LaGuardia, Justin served as event manager with The Rockefeller University, where he led the planning and development of the university’s topical focus academic retreats and managed event budgets and logistical arrangements for all major events including the annual Neuroscience Symposium. Justin also worked with the Queens County Farm Museum to support its public events, including large-scale events like the Fall Festival and Queens County Fair.

Justin earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Queens College and a Master of Arts in Higher Education Administration from Stony Brook University/SUNY.

We would like to thank Evelyn Lowmark, Senior Director of Support Services, for overseeing the Events Department for the past two years. We appreciate Evelyn’s dedicated leadership and her ability to work closely with administrative and technical teams to ensure events were coordinated and presented in partnership with internal and external stakeholders.

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LaGuardia Community College (LAGCC), a Hispanic-Serving Institution, located in Long Island City, Queens offers more than 50 associate degrees and academic certificates, and more than 65 continuing education programs to prepare New Yorkers for transfer to senior colleges and rewarding jobs and careers. An institution of the City University of New York (CUNY), the College reflects the legacy of our namesake, Fiorello H. LaGuardia, the former NYC mayor beloved for his advocacy of the underserved. Since 1971, LaGuardia’s academic programs and support services have advanced the socioeconomic mobility of students from Queens, NYC and beyond.

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