April is Educational Opportunity Fund Month in New Jersey, but it is year-round at Ramapo College

by Lauren Ferguson

In the 26 years that Dr. Deirdre Foreman has worked for the Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) program at Ramapo College of New Jersey, she has witnessed countless lives changed.

“I’ve seen them when they were 18, right out of high school, and I remember them from the first day that they got here,” said Foreman, Associate Director of EOF at Ramapo. She said she can recall who was crying and didn’t want to stay, who drove themselves to campus because they didn’t have family to help, and who was able to adjust to college life, and – with the support of EOF – flourish.

“I find myself thinking about that a lot, more and more each day, those experiences and what they’ve become,” said Foreman. “And it’s amazing.” 

EOF Counselor Keivon Hemmings hugs Janelle Boamah ’25, EOF scholar

Over the years, nervous students who entered the program on Ramapo’s safe, picturesque Mahwah campus the summer before their freshman years have gone on to become attorneys, school teachers, doctors, social workers, entrepreneurs, and even an assistant secretary of higher education.

And “they always come back home to EOF,” she said, whether that’s to talk with and inspire current EOF scholars, to visit the EOF staff, or through subsequent family members who become EOF scholars themselves. 

The New Jersey Educational Opportunity Fund was signed into law in 1968 to ensure access to higher education for state residents coming from backgrounds of economic and educational disadvantage. April marks “Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) Month” in New Jersey, a time to recognize the critical role that EOF plays for students throughout the state.

 Ramapo’s EOF program currently supports over 300 scholars, and is bolstered by comprehensive support services and alumni connections to promote retention and progress through graduation. The initiative features a five-week summer transition program for incoming freshmen, one-on-one advisement, mentorship, academic support programs and tutoring. 

The summer program is key to forming bonds and preparing scholars for success, according to Foreman. During the summer, staff speak with scholars about “their academics, their financial aid, their personal adjustment issues, family issues, career,” so scholars can recognize the EOF office as a supportive hub. Then, their experiences are enhanced by all the other things that they are able to get involved in campuswide, she explained.

“EOF is honestly more than just a financial assistance, they help in so many other ways, like, they help academically, simply giving motivation, encouragement, connecting you to other opportunities that are outside of EOF,” said EOF scholar and Social Work major Nikita Hanover ‘25, who was selected to be Ramapo’s student speaker for the 2025 undergraduate commencement. 

Nikita Hanover ’25, recipient of the 2025 EOF Diamond Award, presented by EOF Scholar Jestina Brown ’26

“They have been the encouragement that I needed. They have been like my family away from home because in anything, big or small, they celebrate every single moment,” Hanover said. After graduation, she will be attending graduate school at New York University for her Master of Social Work.

EOF scholar Lidiya Kelyman ‘26, of Jackson, NJ, said she probably stops by the EOF office once a day. “People are coming in and sharing these big things that they are achieving on campus and these cool opportunities and everyone is always excited for everyone, so it really is, like a small family,” said Kelyman, an English and Literary Studies major who plans to become an English teacher.

Gabriella Ammiano, Director of the EOF program and Student Success at Ramapo, said the office is intentionally designed to make scholars feel comfortable and at home. The office features a satellite food pantry, as well as a microwave and refrigerator where some students store their food. Staff from the First Generation Student Center also frequent the space, so first generation students who are EOF scholars get to know them as well.

“All of that, I think also makes it a little bit more approachable for students to come in here and feel like, I don’t just have to go there to speak about my academics to my advisor,” Ammiano said. 

“If you need a place to exhale, feel free to come to us,” said Christine Millien, EOF’s office coordinator, adding that many EOF staff members identify with the population of EOF scholars. “We are evidence for them that this part of their journey that they’re going through is just a part of it, and that they can achieve greater.”

In fact, two of EOF’s Student Development Specialists were previously Ramapo EOF scholars themselves. Natalie Quiñones ‘15, who earned her BA in Psychology, and Keivon Hemmings ‘18 and ‘24 who earned his BA in Music and MA in Educational Leadership, both now advise and support scholars through their college experiences.

“At first, I thought I was in over my head, almost like that’s a lot, but it’s nice to see where they are and know that some of their stories, like, I’ve been there exactly, and I know how to help them,” said Hemmings, who came to Ramapo from Newark, NJ. He said that many times students just need a listening ear.

Quiñones, of Ridgefield Park, NJ, said EOF staff supported her tremendously when she was a scholar. She would often cry in the office of Foreman – who she now works with side by side –   because she was frustrated or not doing well in certain classes. Foreman, she said, held her accountable to attend tutoring, talk with her professors, and do “the little things that you don’t think about, because this is the first time you are experiencing college.”

RCNJ EOF Team: Natalie Quiñones, Deirdre Foreman, Tanadjza-Robinson McCray, Christine Millien, Keivon Hemmings, Gabriella Ammiano, and Uma Mahalingam

Foreman is still impacting students in major ways. 

In honor of EOF Month, Computer Science major Joel Acosta ‘26, of Garfield, shared about his EOF experience, during a campus ceremony. Acosta, the first member of his immediate family to attend college, knew higher education would be part of his journey, but said he didn’t know how he would navigate the system on his own.

But his uncle, a Ramapo EOF alumnus, would talk about EOF, his advisor, Dr. Foreman, or “Dr. Dee” and the lasting impact she left on him.

“Then I met Dr. Dee at an open house, and she looked me in the eye and told me I’m part of something bigger than just myself. That brief exchange stayed with me. It was the moment I realized how powerful EOF could be: that a complete stranger could see my potential even before I saw it myself,” Acosta said. 

Since then, the program has opened doors that Acosta didn’t even know existed. He has been an EOF summer mentor, will become a resident assistant next year, and was accepted into the McNair Scholars Program. That program, named after Challenger astronaut Ronald E. McNair, supports students in their pursuit of post-graduate studies in STEM fields with the aim of obtaining a Ph.D.

“You know that feeling when someone believes in you—maybe even more than you believe in yourself? That’s what EOF does. They connect you with the right people, the right opportunities, and they give you support that doesn’t quit,” Acosta said.

EOF Student Development Specialist Tanadjza-Robinson McCray said she thinks of Ramapo’s EOF program as a place where miracles happen.

“Before I started working here, I used to think that miracles were something that were just like intangible, supernatural, the impossible,” she said. “But it’s the little things that you see every day, like the progress, the groove, the transformation that you see students make every single day, for me, that’s a miracle.” 

To learn more about the EOF program at Ramapo College, visit ramapo.edu/eof-program.