July 9, 2026

by Lauren Ferguson

A Ramapo College of New Jersey student will spend the upcoming academic year helping to shape financial aid policy on the state level.

Neuroscience Major Olivia Ha ’28, of Northvale, NJ, has been selected to serve on the New Jersey Higher Education Student Assistance Authority (HESAA) Board Student Advisory Committee (SAC) for the 2026-2027 academic year.

HESAA is the state agency responsible for administrative oversight of New Jersey State student financial assistance programs. Its SAC is made up of no more than nine students from colleges and universities in New Jersey who both advise the agency on student perspectives on state financial aid policies and foster communications between HESSA and other students.

“As a member of this committee, you will help shape New Jersey financial aid policy to ensure that pursuing a postsecondary degree in the Garden State is accessible and affordable,” HESAA SAC Liaison Jennifer L. Martin wrote in a letter to Ha confirming her selection.

Ha is no stranger to elevating the student voice to higher education decision-makers. For the past year she has served as the alternate student trustee on the Ramapo College Board of Trustees. And in the upcoming academic year, she will transition to the position of student trustee on the board.

Olivia Ha ’28 was selected to serve on the New Jersey Higher Education Student Assistance Authority Board’s Student Advisory Committee.

“I like being able to bring that student voice and really build that bridge between the board and the student body,” she said of her role on Ramapo’s Board of Trustees.

She is also eager to transfer the knowledge she learns from her state-level experience back to the tight-knit Ramapo community.

“I’m really excited to bring what I take away from the Student Advisory Committee and come back here and bring it to our own meetings, so it is more fruitful,” she said.

A scholar in the College’s Honors Program, Ha aspires to attend medical school. On campus, she serves as president of both the Neuroscience Club and Alpha Lambda Delta Academic Honor Society, and treasurer of both the Pre-Med/Pre-Health Club and the American Cancer Society. She also works for the Jane Addams Papers Project.