October 8, 2026

by Lauren Ferguson

Since her first year of high school, Kayla Erickson ’30 knew she wanted to attend Ramapo College of New Jersey.

“I toured once my freshman year. I kept touring. I kept going to the open houses and everything, and I just felt like I really connected with the school,” said Erickson, of North Haledon in Passaic County, NJ.

Erickson said she was won over by the “beautiful” Mahwah campus, the size of the school, the “tight-knit” community, and the opportunities that would await her as a Roadrunner. “I felt like it was a really good place to meet new people and make new opportunities,” she said.

At 19, Erickson is used to making new opportunities. Since she was 4 years old, she has been acting, first in commercials, then for seven years as the voice of Pinkalicious in the hit PBS cartoon Pinkalicious & Peterrific. She has also done voiceover work for Bubble Guppies on Nickelodeon, and appeared on Saturday Night Live and in the movie Most Beautiful Island. And she started her own non-profit – Sprouting Smiles Outreach – to give back to children and families in need.

After her multiple visits to Ramapo, Erickson was so set on becoming a Roadrunner that she applied Early Decision – a move that allowed her to apply early and receive an admission decision sooner than the early action and regular decision applicant pools. “I was very confident that I wanted to go to Ramapo,” she said, adding “it was definitely the best option for me financially.”

“For those ready to make a commitment to Ramapo, applying early decision can save the time and expense of submitting applications to multiple colleges, reduce stress by cutting the time spent waiting for a decision, expedite the admissions and financial aid process, and ultimately allow students to have their college enrollment decision complete before winter break of their senior year,” said Ramapo’s Director of Admissions Anthony Dovi ’05.

For Erickson, Early Decision was the right decision.

She is now a first-year neuroscience major and psychology minor living on campus in Bischoff Hall, with a roommate who has already become a good friend. “We’re just a perfect match,” she said.

Despite her home being just 25 minutes from campus, Erickson decided to reside at Ramapo, because she “definitely wanted the experience,” she said. The College’s residence halls have ranked #1 among all public and private colleges and universities in New Jersey for nearly a decade. “I think the campus is just so wonderful, and I really wanted to be as involved as possible. I think there are many ways to do that, dorming or commuting, but I just felt like living on campus was the right fit for me.”

She has already become involved on campus and in giving back to the community surrounding Ramapo. As a member of the College’s Leaders in Service (LIS) program, Erickson spent the week before classes began taking part in service projects, political engagement and leadership opportunities.

“We were constantly doing community service and team bonding and talking to people and networking. I got to meet so many incredible people,” Erickson said of her LIS experience. “And it was such an incredible feeling, getting to actually serve the community in person and see the results of that.”

Seeing the results of her service in person is also something Erickson has savored during her non-profit work. Through Sprouting Smiles Outreach, she has organized toy and food drives and been able to deliver toys in person to children and their families.

That feeling of helping others also has driven her future ambitions.

“I want to be a pediatric occupational therapist, so I want to work with kids with developmental differences and help them be able to live life to the fullest,” she said.

Erickson has certainly lived her own life to the fullest – and will continue on that path as she embraces life as a Roadrunner.

Prospective Ramapo College students who want to apply Early Decision should apply by November 1, 2026. For more information on applying Early Decision, visit Ramapo’s Early Decision webpage.