In honor of Disabilities Awareness Month, Ramapo College of New Jersey shares how the College’s nationally-ranked ENHANCE program is supporting and empowering students on the Autism Spectrum.

October 31, 2025

by Lauren Ferguson

Julianna Mayer ‘27 was at an open house at Ramapo College of New Jersey when she first learned about the College’s ENHANCE program.

“It was my dad who pointed it out,” she recalled, adding her father said he’d never seen a college program dedicated to students with Autism Spectrum Disorder. So she walked right up to the table on Ramapo’s welcoming Mahwah campus and asked about it.

From that first conversation, Mayer decided, “I want to be in this program. I want to be at this school.” And over the last three years, ENHANCE has made all the difference for her. Mayer met all three of her suitemates through the program. “Pretty much 80 percent of the friends I have on campus, I met through ENHANCE,” said Mayer, a filmmaking major with a concentration in post production, from Scotch Plains, NJ.

Julianna Mayer ‘27 is a proud member of the ENHANCE program at Ramapo College.

Launched in 2018, the therapeutic support program takes a holistic approach and focuses on social, emotional and organizational growth to assist students with Autism Spectrum Disorder in transitioning to and flourishing in college and beyond.

“We started the program because we saw a lot of students on the spectrum, while they’re academically very capable, sometimes, not with all students, but sometimes, it is a little harder to connect socially and a little harder to find your people,” said Suzanne Calgi, a licensed clinical social worker and assistant director of the ENHANCE program at Ramapo. Calgi said some students were going straight home or to their dorm rooms after class. “We thought, ‘there is more you can do,’” she said.

Suzanne Calgi, assistant director of the ENHANCE program, is also a member of the College Autism Network (CAN) Practitioners’ Advisory Board.

Gaining Support Through Weekly Meetings 

The program features weekly individual therapy for each student. In addition, peer mentors – Ramapo students usually studying social work, psychology or sociology – meet with the students individually to help them foster a social connection, get acclimated to college life, and find clubs and activities of interest. The peer mentors and ENHANCE students meet weekly to do things like walk around campus and talk, meet for breakfast or lunch, or go to the library to study, Calgi said.

Peer Mentor Kirara Fried ‘25 ‘26, who is pursuing her Master of Social Work, likes to plan meetings at the commuter lounge, where her mentees can play video games or pool and work their way up to inviting others to play too. She said she first talks with them about how to interact with other students, to help them eventually build up to inviting others to join in group activities.

“They see me as a student too, so we have that mutual understanding or foundation,” said Fried of Montville, NJ.

Kirara Fried ‘25 ‘26 is a peer mentor for ENHANCE.

Each week, ENHANCE students have access to an academic workshop focused on topics such as time management, executive functioning and strategies for doing well in class. Peer mentors and staff help students put assignments in their planners so students know what work is due that week, Calgi explained. In addition, weekly social events with activities and games are held “so our students can realize school is not all about studying,” Calgi said.

Students also participate in weekly Connections meetings, co-facilitated by the Office of Specialized Services, where they delve into topics of their choice and share strategies that have worked for them. Discussions have focused on topics such as how they feel about being on the spectrum, how to make friends on campus, how many questions are too many questions to ask in class, what to do if they need extra help and how to get along with roommates.

“Students feel comfortable talking to fellow ENHANCE students. It’s nice because students really trust each other,” Calgi said.

For Mayer, the Connections meetings have served as an opportunity for her to both learn and help others. “I have applied a decent amount of the strategies that I have learned through ENHANCE, and I’ve also been able to help a lot of people, where I will raise my hand and I’ll give advice or I’ll tell them one of my strategies that I have used,” she said.

Kyle Desuza ‘26, a first-generation college student and music major with a concentration in music performance, called the ENHANCE program a blessing. “Coming here to help me gain the knowledge I need to create a proper future for myself and my family, it’s a pretty big deal,”  said Desuza, of Metuchen, NJ. “I am making sure I can make the best of it and really do everything I can to make my family proud.”

ENHANCE’s weekly academic workshops, social events and Connections meetings have helped Kyle Desuza ‘26 thrive at Ramapo College.

Witnessing the Results

Calgi said college is different from high school. “For many of our students, they’ve really been able to branch out and make more friends and become more involved, which is great, because that is our goal,” she said.

Mayer did not know any other autistic students in high school. So at Ramapo being around “a community of people that are like me,” has been an amazing opportunity, she said. She has used ENHANCE as a springboard to become involved on campus.

Mayer is the publicist for the Jewish organization Hillel, social media manager for Ramapo College Television (RCTV), and has served as vice president of Alpha Psi Omega, Ramapo’s theater honors society. She is also a member of Geek and Nerd Culture Club, the Disney Club, the Astronomy Club, Ramapo Pride and the Midnight Book Club, and she does as much theater on campus as she can – often auditioning for student productions.

“They’ve absolutely made my college experience,” Mayer said of ENHANCE. “I would not be where I am or who I am without them.”

Ramapo College is ranked among the top 25 colleges in the United States for students with disabilities by GreatValueColleges.net. The rankings prioritize colleges with top-notch disability services that allow their students to succeed.