Thomas A. DeGise
Hudson County Executive
Hudson County Executive Thomas A. DeGise took office after winning a
special election in November 2002 following a scandal that led to
the resignation of his predecessor.
On
his first day in office, County Executive DeGise submitted
legislation to the Board of Chosen Freeholders to finally create an
Ethics Oversight Board for Hudson County government.
In
January 2003, the County Executive made parks, historic preservation
and open space the centerpiece of his first State of the County
Address, calling for Hudson to finally join New Jersey's other
twenty counties in adopting an Open Space Trust.
The
Hudson County Open Space Trust Fund has already helped increase the
amount of open space in Hudson County’s 12 municipalities by
approximately 25 percent.
County Executive DeGise has made workforce development a priority,
highlighted by his creation of the innovative Hudson County Summer
Youth Employment Partnership (SYEP). This program brings government
and business together to provide jobs and job training to hundreds
of at-risk youth.
That
focus on investing in Hudson’s people can be seen in the strong
support for the expansion of Hudson County Community College. The
school has constructed a new, $40 million North Hudson Campus
directly over a light rail stop in Union City and opened a
state-of-the-art Culinary Arts and Conference Center Building to
house the nationally accredited program under the DeGise
Administration.
Within the Northern New Jersey region, County Executive DeGise
serves as the Chairman of the Freight Committee and a member of the
Executive Committee of the New Jersey Transportation Planning
Authority.
He
has been honored by a host of community and civic organizations for
his dedication to the environment, anti-homelessness efforts and for
supporting the independence of individuals with disabilities.
Mr.
DeGise was re-elected to a full, four-year term in November 2003 and
a second four-year term in 2007, which will expire on December 31,
2011.
Prior to serving as County Executive, Mr. DeGise was Jersey City's
longest serving Municipal Council President, holding that office
from 1993 to 2001.
He
entered public life as a community leader during the 1980's,
founding the New #28 School Neighborhood Association and eventually
chairing the Heights Coalition of Neighborhood Associations (HCNA),
a group dedicated to improving quality of life in city's Heights
Section.
The
County executive served for more than two decades as a Jersey City
public schools teacher and administrator. He earned his bachelors
degree in Political Science from St. Peters College in 1973.
Mr. DeGise was born and
raised in Jersey City. He still lives in the Heights section
neighborhood where he was born. He has two grown daughters, Linda
and Amy.
