State Senator John A. Kissel is currently serving his tenth term representing Connecticut’s 7th Senatorial District, which presently includes East Granby, Enfield, Somers, Suffield, Windsor Locks and portions of Granby and Windsor. Senator Kissel is the Senate’s Ranking Member on the Committees on Judiciary and Program Review & Investigations. Senator Kissel also serves on the General Law and Legislative Management Committees.

Born in Worcester, Massachusetts in 1959, Senator Kissel was raised in Windsor, Connecticut. He received a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of Connecticut School of Education in 1981, a Juris Doctor Degree from Western New England College School of Law in 1984, and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Liberal Arts and Sciences, with a major in history, from the University of Connecticut in 2002. He is a Past Adjunct Professor at Bay Path College in Longmeadow, Mass. and currently works as a corporate attorney for Northeast Utilities.

During his years in the General Assembly, Senator Kissel has been a lead advocate on behalf of Connecticut’s senior population. In 2007, he received the Connecticut Commission on Aging’s first annual “Agewise Advocate Award,” given for ongoing exemplary support of the state’s present and future generations of older residents and was recognized by the Connecticut Association of Adult Day Care Centers for his work on behalf of adult day care. Senator Kissel has also in the past been named Legislator of the Year by The Connecticut Association of Not-for-Profit Providers for the Aged for Outstanding Public Service to the Elderly in Connecticut.

In 2007, Senator Kissel became only the 14th individual since 1986 to receive the RisCassi-Koskoff Civil Justice Award from the Connecticut Trial Lawyers Association for his work promoting civil justice throughout Connecticut. Senator Kissel has also been named Legislator of the Year by both the Connecticut Assisted Living Association and the Connecticut Police Chiefs Association. He was also named an Outstanding Supporter of Healthcare by the Connecticut Society of Eye Physicians as well as the Connecticut Dermatological Society.

In addition to his political and professional affiliations, Senator Kissel is also a member of numerous civic organizations, including Enfield’s Our Lady of Mount Carmel Society. He is a current member of the Enfield Republican Town Committee and a past president of the Greater Enfield Lawyers Association and a past member of the Connecticut Bar Association’s House of Delegates.

In 1991, he won the Connecticut Outstanding Young Citizen Award presented by The Connecticut Jaycees and WVIT Channel 30. In 1992, he received the Connecticut Jaycees C. William Brownfield Memorial Award given to the outstanding first-year Jaycee in Connecticut.

Senator Kissel lives in Enfield with his wife, Cynthia, and their sons, Nathaniel and Tristan.