A former president of the Educational Services Commission of New Jersey (2001-2024), Caldwell was also the founding president of the College Achieve of Greater Asbury Park Charter School[3] and served as a member of the New Brunswick Board of Education from 1998 to 2024. He is also the pastor of Covenant United Methodist Church in Plainfield, New Jersey.[4]
After graduating from the Wharton School, Caldwell worked in the public sector health care practice of Deloitte Consulting from 1988 to 1999. He left Deloitte to become the founding executive director of the Newark Alliance, where he led the organization in enhancing education and economic development of New Jersey’s largest city.[9] He left the Newark Alliance to serve as the assistant commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA) for Governor Jim McGreevey’s administration from 2003 to 2005. He was later promoted to deputy commissioner and served as the chief operating officer of the department.[10]
USTA
Caldwell became the first Black president and CEO of the United States Tennis Association (USTA) Eastern Section in 2006. The election was challenged by the losing candidate, Gerard E. Cuva, a white tennis instructor from Albany, who filed a lawsuit contending that the vote counting was improperly influenced. The lawsuit was ultimately overturned.[11]
The newly installed USTA Eastern Section president suggested that the International Tennis Hall of Fame (ITHF) create an exhibit called “Breaking The Barriers” celebrating Black tennis history. Caldwell served as the co-curator of this exhibit with Arthur Carrington. It debuted at the 2007 US Open, where more than 26,000 spectators viewed the exhibit.[12] The success of the exhibit inspired Caldwell to found the Black Tennis Hall of Fame in 2008 to celebrate players and contributors who were denied the right to participate in white only tennis tournaments and events.
As chair of the USTA Strategic Planning Committee, Caldwell created the New York Open, a professional tournament in Central Park. It was designed to help players rated 300 and below in the world earn extra income.[13] The tournament ran from 2013 to 2019. In 2021, Caldwell was inducted into the Eastern Tennis Hall of Fame.[14]
Education
Caldwell was first appointed to the New Brunswick Public Schools Board of Education in 1998 and served as President for a total of six years before he resigned in 2024[15]. In 2009, he was selected as the New Jersey School Board Member of the Year by the New Jersey School Boards Association.[16] During this time Caldwell also founded the consulting, training and coaching firm Strategic Influence.[17]
Caldwell also served as a member of the Educational Services Commission of New Jersey Board of Directors from 1999 to 2024, and serves as President from 2001 to 2024. He has served as President of the Board of the College Achieve of Greater Asbury Park Charter School since 2017.[3]
In 2013, the Village Charter School in Trenton, New Jersey, named Caldwell head of school.[18] In 2015, he was named the Charter School Administrator of the Year from the New Jersey Charter School Association for his work leading the Village Charter School.[19]
Fairleigh Dickinson University
Caldwell became the executive director of the Rothman Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship in the Silberman College of Business at Fairleigh Dickinson University in 2018.[20] In this position, he led the expansion of the Veterans Launching Ventures program,[21] the New Jersey Family Business of the Year Awards, and the Executive Coaching program.[22]
He held this position until he became president of Centenary University in 2023. Caldwell is a licensed local pastor in the United Methodist Church and has been the pastor of Covenant United Methodist Church in Plainfield since 2021.
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