Trent Joseph: The Direct Route to Madison Director of Health
Some lucky people discover their calling early. Trent Joseph began to discover his at the tender age of 13 while spreading hay and grass seed over recently installed septic tanks.
Continuing to work for the same septic-tank company, in Norwalk, through high school and college, he gradually moved from landscaping to installation and then operating heavy equipment. In the process, he learned about sanitation from below the ground up. With that head start, it’s not too surprising that Joseph became Madison’s director of health this June at the still young age of 26.
“That’s my field,” Joseph says. “I’m public health. That’s just me. That’s who I am.”
Of course, the field encompasses far more than just septic. Among Joseph’s responsibilities are restaurant inspections, water and air quality, radon monitoring, mosquito control, and infectious-disease prevention. “Ultimately,” Joseph says, “we are hoping that we can increase the awareness and overall wellbeing of our population in Madison.
“One of the goals for Madison that I see in the short term,” he says, “is to bring the department up to operate at the standard that the state Department of Health is operating at. The way we can do that to make the in-house process more user friendly, in how we process our permits and our inspections—where the rubber touches the road.”
The Department of Health will also be involved in the town’s plan to increase fees for permits and inspections, bringing them in line with those charged in neighboring communities. Joseph sees the plus side to this.
“We’re trying to take the cost out of the taxpayers’ hands,” he says.
He also believes that the new system of fees will help improve record keeping.
Joseph’s optimism will come in handy. After the previous director of health, John Bowers, retired in January, the town considered eliminating the position and the department and joining one of two nearby regional health districts.
Stipulating that he’s not an impartial judge, Joseph argues that a one-town department has its advantages. Although a larger staff might have more expertise, it’s spread out over diverse populations and infrastructure.
Citing the East Shore District Health Department, where he worked as a food inspector before taking the Madison job, Joseph says, “You have East Haven, Branford, and North Branford. Each of those towns is completely different. For example, there isn’t as much septic in East Haven as opposed to North Branford.
“But when you’re working with one town,” he says, “you have better understanding of the population that you need to serve and the people, and you get a better assessment from the community of their needs.”
Joseph admits that he’s landed his dream job.
“This is something that I’ve always wanted to do,” he says. “A lot of people, they say, ‘You’ve really taken a step up,’ but if you look at any of my college essays, any essay that I wrote for a scholarship, it was always about becoming a director of health. I’ve wanted to be a director of health since I was 21.”
That desire may go back to a health issue Joseph faced in 7th grade. “I was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis,” he says.
The steroid used to treat the disease made the formerly skinny but athletic kid put on weight.
“When you’re physically not in shape,” he says, “or when you’re overweight, you’re pulled from so many opportunities. You really don’t even understand it. You don’t seem competent for some reason. That’s some of the things that I had to put up with at a young age. You know, bullying and all that stuff.
“That’s why promoting health, preventing illness, and just ultimately raising awareness for everything that public health encompasses has been my field,” he says.
After finishing high school in Norwalk, Joseph attended Central Connecticut State University, playing winter and spring football. But he says that all he was getting out of the sport was “early mornings and late nights—and I still had to get my schoolwork done.
“I said, ‘Public health is the thing for me,’” he says, and transferred to Southern Connecticut State University, where he earned his bachelor of science and master’s degrees in public health by the age of 23.
“I kind of put my ears back,” he says, “and I just went for it.”
At the age of 24, he was an instructor in the university’s Department of Public Health, a position he still holds.
Joseph’s parents, immigrants from the West Indian island of Grenada, are both in public health. His father is a sanitarian in Norwalk and Wilton; his mother is a nurse who now works in administration. Trent’s fiancée, Alma Dwumfour, with whom he lives in Stratford, is studying at Fairfield University to be a nurse practitioner.
The family frequently visits Grenada.
“My family gives back,” says Joseph. “We do fundraisers; we do book-bag drives, food drives. We work with the churches.”
In his spare time, Joseph coaches Pop Warner football and participates in bodybuilding competitions in the “classic physique” division. He came in second in his two most recent competitions.
But the new job isn’t leaving Joseph much spare time.
“Obviously” he says, “you want more manpower. Everybody needs more manpower in public health. That’s just the way the field is. Especially with the state cuts. You know, everybody’s in a drought.”
Joseph simply keeps his eyes on the prize.
“There’s always going to be obstacles,” he says, “but it’s not what you’re working on. It’s what you’re working towards.”
To nominate a Madison or Killingworth Person of the Week, email Tom Conroy at t.conroy@zip06.com.