Public Safety is tracking a significant snowfall that will be arriving in our area late Sunday morning (Jan. 25). It will snow heavily throughout the day and evening eventually tapering off Monday (Jan. 26) with 10-14 inches expected statewide. A sleet and freezing rain mix is also possible along the shore. Temperatures will be in the teens and twenties.
Due to this significant winter storm and the extensive campus clean-up operations that will need to take place, all in-person day and evening classes scheduled for Monday, January 26, 2026 have been cancelled. All scheduled in-person classes will transition to being held online or remotely. Additional information on the virtual format for each class will be provided by your instructor.
Faculty have been asked to prepare for Online or Remote sessions in the event of in-person meeting cancellations. These options will be determined by the Faculty member and all questions should be directed to the Faculty teaching each course section. Faculty also have been asked to be very understanding and accommodating of the individual situations of their students who may have difficulty managing these alternative online or remote class meetings on short notice.
Please note that only essential employees, as previously determined by their respective department leaders, should report to campus. All other employees should fulfill the requirements of their role remotely.
Campus operations for residential students, unless otherwise noted, will operate as scheduled, though hours may be modified or changed based on the conditions. Separate messages will be sent from the Peterson Library, the Beckerman Recreation Center, and Dining Services regarding any changes to their normal hours of operation. The Bergami Center for Science, Technology, and Innovation will remain open for residential students to use for study space and to participate in online classes.
Off-campus students that live in the City of West Haven should abide by the city’s parking ban during inclement weather to avoid having their vehicle tagged and towed. Please check the City of West Haven’s website for further information on their snow parking ban.
The Charger Blog
New communication major Saiful Islam Mannu ’21, who has hundreds of credits to his name, is a household name in Bangladesh. "Kind of like how we just say Scorsese or Spielberg," says Professor Tom Garrett.
April 6, 2018
In the Advanced Screenwriting and the Fundamentals of Production classes this semester is an undergraduate student who knows a thing or two about directing and writing for television. Saiful Islam Mannu ’21 has directed 600 TV episodes in Bangladesh, 60 telefilms, 28 one-hour dramas, two feature films and dozens of documentaries.
"In Bangladesh he’s known just by Mannu," says Tom Garrett, associate professor and chair of the Department of Communication, Film, & Media Studies. "Kind of like how we just say Scorsese or Spielberg."
Despite his lofty credentials, there is Mannu, collaborating with classmates on an audio project and writing the first 30 pages of his screenplay for class. The University’s career-focused education is something he’s always wanted. "I love it," he says.
How Mannu, who grew up in a family of agricultural workers in a small village in Bangladesh, in a home without electricity, television or access to "any culture – no movies, no theater," went on to become a wildly successful director and then found his way to West Haven is quite a journey.
Mannu and his wife moved to the U.S. last year. Mannu’s uncle, a Yale professor whose good friend was a longtime mentor of Garrett’s, help connect the two. "We met and talked about working on a feature film or a project, involving our students, using our facilities," Garrett says.
The next day, as Mannu toured the University with Garrett, a new idea took shape.
"He fell in love with the University and decided to apply," Garrett says.
Now, Mannu is writing the script for his third feature film for his screenwriting class. The piece centers around a young woman born in the United States to immigrant parents and the challenges she faces being part of two worlds. Garrett sees many possibilities.
"It’s a project that could have all kinds of crossover, a piece written by an immigrant, a Sundance kind of film that he would develop during his four years here as a thesis project." Tom Garrett
The extensive experience Mannu can share with his fellow students is invaluable, says Paul Falcone, director of studio operations and media production, who says 10 percent of making a film is the artistic and creative ability to tell a story.
Adds Garrett, "The other 90 percent is the hustle, the location scouting, the financing, and the marketing. Mannu knows all about this. We can help him, and he can help our students see the big picture and be involved in the whole experience writing, shooting, and marketing a film. Right now it’s an idea but you have to visualize something to actualize it."
Mannu first began to visualize a cultural life when as a child he happened upon a Hindu festival in a nearby village in Bangladesh and was drawn to the music and dance. His parents wanted him to become an engineer or to work, as his family did, in agriculture and fishing.
But, after high school, he went to the city of Dhaka, hoping to work for the government-run television station. Without experience, he was told he’d have to wait three or four years for a chance to even get in the door. Undaunted, he returned later that night, got into a rehearsal, and offered to play drum rhythms when a drummer didn’t show. Later, when they needed someone on the camera crew, he learned on the job – paid only in food – and took on every odd job on the production he could.
"Whatever it is that has to be done, this guy, he will find a way to do it." Saiful Islam Mannu's wife, Sadia Shabnam Shantu, who is the production and costume designer on all of his teleplays and films Garrett
His big break came when he wrote a script and a producer asked him to direct it, launching a successful career now in its second decade. "That’s when my life started," he said. "Now, it starts again."
University News
New University-wide council will advance strategic partnerships, immersive student opportunities, and innovative research, supporting the University’s strategic plan the development of its pioneering Center for Innovation and Applied Technology.
The Charger Blog
Entrepreneur David Sussman, Pompea College of Business Advisory Board Member and chief visionary officer of The Family Security Plan®, is collaborating with University of New Haven students, faculty, and staff to create a program and app that helps Chargers support each other to achieve academic, personal, and professional goals. It’s called Uccountability.
University News
Vice President for Innovation and Applied Technology Paul Lavoie will serve on the Board of Directors and as America’s Chief Manufacturing Officer for the newly launched American Manufacturing Futures Institute.