Connecticut State Banking Commissioner Jorge Perez has been named to the Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center Foundation Board of Directors. Commissioner Perez, a native of Cuba whose family immigrated to U.S. and ultimately settled in New Haven five decades ago, has served as Banking Commissioner since 2015, in the cabinet of two Connecticut Governors. 

As Banking Commissioner, he has jurisdiction over the State’s laws regarding state-chartered banks and credit unions, consumer credit, broker-dealers, investment advisers, securities, and tender offers. He serves as a voting ex-officio member of the Board of Directors of the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, and an ex-officio member of the Connecticut Retirement Security Authority Board.

“For me, life has always been about doing the right thing, trying to make a difference in somebody’s life. That’s what draws me to the extraordinary work of the Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center and the CS-HHC Foundation,” Perez stated. “An unrelenting dedication to excellence, and to delivering high caliber, quality health care to the community, has always characterized Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center, and that’s never been more important than today. Helping people to navigate a way forward to better health has an enormous impact. I look forward to supporting that essential work.”

Perez lived in the Hill neighborhood for more than 40 years, and continues to be an integral part of the Elm City community. In 1987, he was elected to New Haven’s Board of Alders, representing the 5th Ward. He served as that Board’s President, from 2000 to 2006, and was on its Finance Committee for 10 years, including being its Chair for eight years. He served on numerous other committees, including chairing the Black and Hispanic Caucus, from 2006 to 2011.

Prior to his appointment as Banking Commissioner, Perez served as Vice President/Senior Commercial Loan Officer of Liberty Bank. Before that, he worked at Sovereign Bank New England as Vice President and Community Banking Manager of the New Haven Exchange Branch and was employed by Bank Boston for 12 years before it was purchased by Sovereign Bank.

“We are being very thoughtful in building the CS-HHC Foundation Board and Jorge is a perfect addition,” said Foundation Board Chair LindyLee Gold. “He is a trusted community leader, a sage advisor, and an astute financial expert. If we had boxes, Jorge would check every single one.”

The CS-HHC Foundation, established last year, includes leaders across Greater New Haven. The Board is led by Chair LindyLee Gold, Senior Specialist, State of Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development; and President Michael R. Taylor, the CEO of CS-HHC. Board members include Paul McCraven, Chief Operating Officer of ConnCORP; Gladys Soto, President and CEO of Sunset Shores, Inc.; Joshua Bird, MBA, Chief Financial Officer of the Housing Authority of the City of Hartford; Len Suzio, President of Suzio York Hill Companies; Dr. Deborah Dyett Desir, Associate Professor of Medicine (Rheumatology) in the Section of Rheumatology, Allergy, and Immunology at Yale University School of Medicine; and Andrea Lobo, Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center Chief Human Resources Officer. 

The establishment of the CS-HHC Foundation last fall came as public interest in supporting the range of health care services being provided has been steadily growing - particularly during the pandemic - recognizing the increasing need in New Haven and throughout the region. Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center has more than doubled in size over the past several years and now serves more than 55,000 people annually. The number of patient visits in 2022 exceeded 300,000. 

“Jorge Perez has a genuine passion for improving people’s lives. He has consistently used his considerable skills and commitment to advance initiatives to provide people with opportunities that have truly impacted their lives,” said Michael Taylor, Foundation Board President and CEO of Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center. “His phenomenal leadership and wide-ranging community involvement will greatly enhance our efforts, and we look forward to his insight as a member of the Foundation Board.” 

A University of New Haven graduate and resident of Cheshire since 2018, Jorge Perez and his wife Gloria previously resided in New Haven for four decades, and remain actively involved in the New Haven community and region. Their daughter Lynette is a Yale University graduate.  

Perez’s broad-based experience and insightful leadership contributed significantly to New Haven’s renaissance, advocating for a series of initiatives impacting youth and the New Haven community.



He also sat on the Boards of the Community Action Agency of Greater New Haven and Habitat for Humanity, serving as Treasurer for both. He was on the Board of the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority and the Hill Development Corporation of New Haven, the latter of which he served as Chair of the Special Projects Committee. More recently, he helped establish New Haven Works and currently chairs its Board of Directors.

The first community health center in Connecticut, established in 1968, CS-HHC celebrates “55 years of health equity in action” in 2023. The 55th Anniversary of Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center will be celebrated with a special community-wide event to be held on September 21, 2023.

Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center is among the nation’s leading community health centers, ranked in the top 3% in the United States. CS-HHC provides health care services to residents of New Haven, West Haven and towns in the Lower Naugatuck Valley - Ansonia, Seymour, Shelton, Naugatuck, and Oxford – with 27 clinical sites and school-based health centers in the region. 

Construction began last fall on CS-HHC’s Recovery & Wellness Center, which will offer a safe, short-term therapeutic living environment and outpatient services for people in treatment for substance use disorders and co-occurring mental health illnesses, impacting individual lives, families, and communities. When it opens early next year, it will be among the largest in South Central Connecticut, and part of a comprehensive CS-HHC campus in New Haven.  

CS-HHC is a Joint Commission accredited institution, accountable to the highest standards and best practices in safe and effective care, providing state-of-the-art, integrated care with a clear mission: “To measurably improve the health and well-being of the communities they serve by providing excellent and compassionate care, accessible to all.” The mission of the Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is “To support Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center in promoting the health and well-being of the communities it serves.” 

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Media Contact: Carlah Esdaile-Bragg, Director, Marketing and Community Relations

cesdaile@cornellscott.org, 203-503-3276