Roadrunner Alumni
Student Perspectives on the
Class of 2024’s Journey
to a Meaningful Milestone
By Will Jackson, ’25 | Fall 2024
“It was surreal,” Mahogany Wheeler, a member of Ramapo’s class of 2024, said of May’s commencement ceremony at the Prudential Center. The class of 2024 graduates have a unique story as they are the first four-year class to have missed their high school graduation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “We didn’t know the mannerisms of graduation because of [COVID-19]… I don’t remember much of it because I was in shock,” she continued.
Many class of 2024 graduates never had a “normal” graduation. The COVID-19 pandemic forced their high school graduation in 2020 to be different, ranging from online ceremonies to car parades.
Every student who graduated from high school in 2020 could tell a different story of how their school attempted to make their graduations happen. “[Union Catholic Regional] invited us back to do a mock graduation so we could walk on stage, but it’s not the same thing as getting your name called and wearing everything,” Mia Schutz ’24, said. “We didn’t have a high school graduation,” Dynazia Holness ’24, said. “They put our pictures on the news with our names and whoever gave speeches,” she continued.
Other options for the COVID-19 high school class included a drive-through style graduation, which Wheeler experienced, or a small, socially-distanced outdoor gathering, such as the ceremony for the homeschooled Anna Kozan. “[May] was my first experience with a real graduation,” Kozan ’24, said. “It was a celebration of our last eight years in one graduation,” she continued.
“[May] was my first experience with a real graduation. It was a celebration of our last eight years in one graduation.”
— Anna Kozan ’24
Once the Ramapo class of 2024 embarked on their first year, the struggles and adversities continued to mount, as most of their first year-and-a-half was completed virtually. “Luckily, I was able to meet people before my freshman year online through the Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) program at Ramapo,” Holness said. “I felt like that helped me. Having someone who has already been through this guide me, someone who isn’t a family member and comes from a similar background,” she continued.
Once Holness completed her first year, she became an EOF mentor for her final three years at Ramapo. “My first year doing it, I was helping someone through college, guiding them and being there for them, academically or personally. I still keep in contact with many students I’ve mentored,” she said. Holness will spend the next year studying for the LSAT and hopes to volunteer as much as possible.
Despite only two-and-a-half full years on campus, the class of 2024 made the most of their time at Ramapo. As a four-year softball team member, Wheeler said she wouldn’t trade her experience on the team for anything. “Those girls are my family; I’ll do anything for every class above and below me.”
Schutz didn’t live on campus until her junior year, but she savored every second of the Ramapo experience once she arrived. “I joined the Disney Club, the Harry Potter Club, the Animation Club… One of my professors even wanted me to illustrate a children’s book, which was a cool experience.” Schutz, who majored in visual arts, says she and three other classmates have begun developing their own video game company and are in the process of designing their own game.
Kozan, who graduated with a nursing degree, spent most of her time at Ramapo on the e-board of the Spanish Club, as a choreographer for the Ramapo College Dance Company and as an active participant in the Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship. “There were a lot of opportunities for leadership on campus,” she said. “I also studied abroad in Spain, which sparked my love for travel.” Kozan will spend the next year traveling to Georgia through a Critical Language Scholarship, where she will learn Russian, and then go to India as part of a Fulbright Scholarship.
Wheeler spent her time at Ramapo as a biology major, something that pushed her incredibly hard. “The degree was tough; emotionally, mentally, it took a toll on my [mental] state. Combining that with a sport that sees many failures and not a whole lot of success,” she said. “When the semester was over, I was like, ‘thank goodness,’ I wanted it to be over so bad… It was probably the hardest four years of my life,” she continued. Wheeler is now a receptionist for Atlantic Medical Imaging and hopes to work her way into the medical field. Additionally, she is strongly considering taking an offer to coach a 12U softball team for Stars National.
Mahogany Wheeler ’24
For the class of 2024, their commencement in Newark held an additional meaning, as it was the first time many of their relatives and close friends could see them in any graduation setting. “My grandparents from Trinidad flew in to see the graduation,” Schutz said. “I wasn’t able to see them for three years; not having them at my high school graduation was a big deal, so it was important for me to have them here this time,” she continued.
Among those in attendance for Wheeler was her little sister, for whom she considers herself a role model. “I paved the way for her. We’re 10 years apart; we play the same sport; it was very important for me to have that goal and role model status for her.” Wheeler said this graduation held a special meaning to her, given her status as a first-generation student. “I doubted myself that I couldn’t do it… It was significant for her and me [to graduate], and I guess that was another weight I put on myself.”
“Being at the Prudential Center that day made me realize I missed out on this in high school,” Schutz said. “It was a long time coming for this to happen,” said Wheeler. “I’m so glad I got to experience this with the people in my life.”
