Skip to College News & Media site navigationSkip to main content

Under the Arch: More Than 1,400 New Students Welcomed to Ramapo

A group of young people in maroon shirts line up outside in front of a large arch. They are smiling and clapping.

August 27, 2026

by Lauren Ferguson

Ramapo College of New Jersey officially welcomed more than 1,400 new Roadrunners Sunday.

The roughly 1,110 new first-year students and 337 new transfer students and their families converged on Ramapo’s picturesque Mahwah, NJ campus for the college’s annual check-in day. The newest Roadrunners were selected from the largest pool of applicants in Ramapo history.

About 430 student volunteers assisted the newest Roadrunners as some moved into Ramapo’s top-ranked residence halls, and others checked in to learn about services and programs for those commuting to campus. They then took part in the New Student Assembly (NSA) and the college’s time-honored Arching tradition.

“Ramapo is ready for you to jump in,” Ramapo College President Cindy Jebb, PhD, told the students as they gathered on the floor of the Bradley Center Arena for the NSA. “Clubs, teams, internships, research, study abroad, service learning, mentoring, and prestigious scholarships and fellowships—if you jump into even a few of these, you’ll leave here not just with a degree, but with the confidence, humility, awareness, relationships, and experiences to navigate a complex future and thrive along the way.”

Following NSA, students filed out of the Bradley Center and walked up Mansion Road toward the historic Havemeyer Arch. Family and friends gathered along the sides of the rock-wall lined pathway to cheer, clap and rejoice in the start of their students’ undergraduate careers. The students were congratulated at the Arch by President Jebb, college leadership and dedicated staff, before walking underneath.

A line of college students walk and smile.

Roadrunners walked up Mansion Road toward the historic Havemeyer Arch.

At Ramapo, Arching ceremonies mark the beginning and the end of a student’s college experience. When they first become Roadrunners, students walk up the hill of Mansion Road and under the Havemeyer Arch, signifying the beginning of their time at Ramapo College. Then when it’s time to graduate, they walk under the Arch, and down the pathway, closing their tenures as Roadrunners.

“It felt good. It was exciting,” Sebastian Mey ’30, a political science major from Oak Ridge, NJ, said after walking under the Arch. His father, Rob Mey, was there to cheer him on.

“This is a very, very proud moment for me. It really is amazing,” Rob Mey said. “He’s an amazing person, an incredible student, all around fantastic, and I’m looking forward to this being the beginning of his next step in his next big adventure… I want to see him grow. I want to see him do more incredible things, and just enjoy his time here.”

A father and college-aged son stand together outside and smile.

Sebastian Mey ’30 was congratulated by his father Roby Mey after walking under Ramapo’s historic Havemeyer Arch.

Christine Donatone of Virginia Beach was on campus to support her daughter Olivia Wintrode ’30, also from Virginia Beach. “I loved watching her walk up the hill,” Donatone said, after taking pictures of Olivia with her new field hockey teammates.

“It was fun, because the field hockey team was so supportive, and all of us were together,” said Wintrode, a law and society major, adding “I really love the campus.”

Wintrode is one of 125 NCAA DIII athletes in the incoming class who will proudly wear the Roadrunner logo as they represent Ramapo on the field, court, track, pool and diamond.

A large Rpadrunner mascot walks with its hands up. It is surrounded by college students in maroon shirts.

The Ramapo College mascot, Rocky the Roadrunner, led students up Mansion Road during the Arching ceremony.

The newest group of Roadrunners also includes:

  • 100 students in the College Honors program, the largest cohort in Ramapo history;
  • 132 students participating in the Educational Opportunity Fund program;
  • 147 students enrolled in Ramapo’s 4+1 programs and joint medical or law school programs;
  • 410 students bringing in at least 1 AP course or dual enrollment course credit;
  • 21 students who were presidents of high school student government associations;
  • 4 high school valedictorians;
  • Students from all 21 counties in New Jersey, as well as California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Maryland, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Vermont, as well as Bulgaria, India, Israel and Nepal;
  • And 50% are first-generation college students, the first in their families to pursue a bachelor’s degree.

“You’re joining a community of thinkers, doers, creators, and problem-solvers who lift each other up, work hard, and make a difference not only on this campus, but in communities and industries they touch long after graduation,” Jebb told them all.