September 8, 2026

by Lauren Ferguson

Ramapo College of New Jersey’s Class of 2030 plunged into their college academic experiences by participating in Ramapo’s traditional summer reading program.

Over the summer, the roughly 1,110 incoming first-year students were asked to read The Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler.

Then, to officially kick off their first academic year as Roadrunners, they packed into the Bradley Center Arena on Ramapo’s picturesque Mahwah, NJ campus to take part in the College’s 2026 Opening Convocation focused on the novel.

“Students, we take very seriously the importance of your first-year experience; it is one of the key reasons why we are a national leader in student retention. But it is more than retention. We are committed to ensuring that you have the resources, information, support systems, mentorship to truly thrive– to explore, to learn, and to grow along the way,” Ramapo College President Cindy Jebb, PhD, told the eager Roadrunners. “Author Octavia Butler, wrote in Parable of the Sower, ‘All that you touch, you change. All that you change, changes you.’ Here at Ramapo, you are entering a space designed to shape that very cycle of change.”

Each fall, first-year students are asked to arrive at Ramapo prepared to discuss the summer reading selection in their First-Year Seminar courses. The First-Year Seminar was created to develop students’ critical thinking skills using open discussion, reading, writing and experiential learning. Each course focuses on a different topic, and professors use aspects of the summer reading novel to teach and spark conversations.

“Education isn’t something that just happens to you. It’s a conversation. It’s an active dialogue between you and the world around you. And remember this: your classmates bring diverse experiences and perspectives. Learn from them. Share your own. Some of the best lessons you’ll take from Ramapo won’t come from a textbook — they’ll come from the conversations you have with one another,” Ramapo College Provost Michael Middleton, PhD, told the students at convocation. “This journey is about discovering who you are, what you value, and how you want to make a difference. That’s exactly what you’ll start doing in your First-Year Seminar as you discuss The Parable of the Sower.”

Ramapo’s summer reading program also features an essay contest. Each summer, incoming Roadrunners may submit essays on the summer reading selection.

Director of First-Year Seminar Peter Campbell, PhD, said a record number of students submitted essays this year. “We see in your submissions the remarkable talent and promise in the Ramapo College Class of 2030,” Campbell, a professor of Theater History and Criticism, told the convocation crowd.

This year’s essay winners were:

• Chemistry Major Alessandra Duran ’30 of Pearl River, NY;
• Communication Arts Major Melanie Edwards ’29 of Titusville, NJ; and
• Neuroscience Major Caitlin Yantsos ’30 of Suffern, NY.

The winners were on stage as part of the convocation dais party. They had the opportunity to ask questions of keynote speaker Adenike Marie Davidson, PhD, Dean of the College of Humanities, Education, and Social Sciences at Delaware State University. Davidson is a scholar of American and African American literature, with over two decades of teaching, research, and academic leadership.

The dais party also included: Student Trustee Olivia Ha ’28 of Northvale, NJ, Ramapo Board of Trustees Member Susan Vallario, and Associate Professor of Law and Society Jeffrey Ellsworth, PhD, who held up the college mase to signal the start of convocation.

For more information on Ramapo’s summer reading and First-Year Seminar programs, visit Ramapo’s First-Year Seminar webpage.