Asnuntuck Professor Nick Lefakis Retires After 41 Years

ENFIELD, Conn. — Asnuntuck Community College Accounting Professor Nicles Lefakis recently retired after 41 years of teaching at ACC.

Part of a two-person team in the early years, he and Esther Alaimo built an accounting program that boasted the highest percentage of students in the state’s community-college system. They also negotiated the first transfer agreements with four-year colleges that provided for all degree requirements to be transferred.

Lefakis was also key to development of the first accounting course specifically aimed at assisting small-business owners with their bookkeeping needs, again a model for the state’s community colleges.

“After 41 years, Nick Lefakis is the longest-serving full-time faculty member in Asnuntuck’s history,” said Teresa Foley, interim dean of Academics. “His dedication to Asnuntuck’s students and the community throughout the years has been steadfast and unprecedented. His great sense of humor and historical perspective are always appreciated by his colleagues and students alike. We are glad that Nick is not going far and will be back to teach part-time at Asnuntuck in the fall.”

Lefakis was a faculty leader at Asnuntuck, often elected by his peers to serve on committees related to personnel, curriculum and academic standards, and improving instruction. He was also selected by college management to serve on various committees related to accreditation, college management, and course transfer.

Always interested in helping the community, Lefakis and Alaimo brought the Internal Revenue Service’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) to Asnuntuck in the early 1980s and ran it for a number of years. Lefakis was key in helping long-time colleague Bill Searle recently get ACC to once again be the host for VITA in Enfield.

On the state level, Lefakis was deeply involved with the state Center for Teaching since its inception. Selected to the staff of the prestigious Barnes Seminar in its second year, he was selected as a staff member more often than any other person in the state.

Michelle Coach, Asnuntuck’s interim CEO, applauded Lefakis’ commitment to the college. “He has dedicated 41 years to Asnuntuck Community College in the Business department. We wish him the best and will not forget his words of wisdom, incredible memory of the past, and his witty sense of humor. We are thankful he will continue as an adjunct at the college.”