A Message from Josh Harraman, Ph.D.

Vice President for Alumni Engagement, Annual Giving, and Advancement Communications

I hope this message finds you and your loved ones healthy, happy, and safe.

This fall, Rutgers University welcomed all members of our community back to our university locations. From our students, faculty, and staff to our alumni and friends, Rutgers looks like Rutgers again. Throughout the previous 18 months of mostly online interaction, our commitment to the Rutgers community and the world remained steadfast. The circumstances that we and the rest of the world experienced over the past year and a half were taxing in many ways, but they strengthened our resolve and reaffirmed who we are as an institution.

We want to thank you, our donors, for your unwavering support during this period. You helped us accomplish vital work ranging from educating the next generation of leaders to fueling our researchers’ landmark discoveries.

Your gifts have provided the means to explore problems facing society today and discover solutions. Here are just a few critical initiatives your gifts helped make possible:

• A Rutgers study finds that variations in autism prevalence occur at the community level.
• Rutgers researchers have linked the genetic disorders Fragile X and SHANK3 deletion syndrome—both associated with autism and health problems—to walking patterns by examining the microscopic movements of those wearing motion-sensor sneakers.
• A new Rutgers program paves the way for economically disadvantaged students to attend medical school and pursue careers in primary care and service to urban communities.
• Honors College–New Brunswick students aim to revolutionize the technology of targeted nutrient and drug delivery for infants.
• In his second address to the University Senate on September 24, President Jonathan Holloway announced the university’s commitment to a Climate Action Plan and the formation of the Office of Climate Action that will lead the university’s efforts to achieve carbon neutrality by 2040.

Our work during the pandemic reaffirms our status as one of the nation’s preeminent comprehensive public research universities. The thoughtful contributions of donors like you allow us to build on our proud history and play a role in bettering the world.

The following report highlights a few of the Rutgers successes you and other donors make possible. Although space prevents us from discussing every donor-supported fund, program, or research initiative, you can take pride in knowing that you make a difference no matter your area(s) of support. Your gifts ensure that opportunities, breakthroughs, and success stories arealways possible at Rutgers.

I wish you a joyous holiday season and a happy, healthy, and safe new year. Thank you again for your support for Rutgers University.

Scarlet Promise Grants

In the year since Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway called for broad support for Scarlet Promise Grants, donors gave more than $10 million to empower tomorrow’s leaders.

In the year since Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway called for broad support for Scarlet Promise Grants, donors gave more than $10 million to empower tomorrow’s leaders.

On his first day as president, July 1, 2020, Holloway called on the Rutgers community to support the grants, which provide need-based financial aid and emergency support to more than 9,000 students annually. Since his call for support, more than 3,500 donors contributed to Scarlet Promise Grants with gifts ranging from $5 to $1 million.

“There is no greater calling for university communities today than to make sure our students can pursue an excellent, life-changing education regardless of economic challenges,” Holloway said in launching the campaign. “Every dollar contributed to the Scarlet Promise Grants is a declaration of faith in the transformative power of a Rutgers education.”

“My grant took a lot of pressure off me,’’ said David Zhu, a student in the School of Arts and Sciences at Rutgers University–New Brunswick who received a Scarlet Promise Grant. “With it, I could focus on school and not have to work all the time.”

“This is a victory for our students and for Rutgers,” Holloway said. “Empowering great students from every point on the economic spectrum to attend a school like ours is a hallmark of excellence in higher education. And this is a victory for the Rutgers community—a wonderful display of unity, principle, and character.”

Tidal Marsh Research

Rutgers researchers have discovered that New Jersey’s tidal marshes, where the ocean meets the land, are not keeping up with sea level rise and could disappear by the next century. The findings, which include potential solutions for preserving these marshlands, appeared in the journal Anthropocene Coasts. “Faced with sea-level rise, a marsh has two options—it can either increase its elevation at a rate equal to that of sea-level rise or it can migrate inland,” says lead author Judith Weis, a professor emerita of biological sciences at Rutgers–Newark. “Otherwise, it will be submerged and drown.”

Tidal marshes are vital habitats for many aquatic organisms such as fishes, crabs, and shrimp, as well as birds and mammals, and provide a buffer against storm surges, winds, and flooding. The marshes also absorb pollutants such as toxic metals and nitrogen.

The research team reviewed previous studies of coastal marsh systems in New Jersey, focusing on the Meadowlands, Raritan Bay, Barnegat Bay, and Delaware Bay. For each marsh system, they examined horizontal changes—changes in marsh area over time—and vertical changes in elevation. The researchers found that most marshes throughout the state are not increasing their elevation as rapidly as sea level is rising. The rate of sea-level rise in the mid-Atlantic is higher than the worldwide average for various geophysical reasons.

Read more about this important study and learn how donor support helps make it possible.

Epilepsy Breakthrough

Donor support fuels critical research that can have a tremendous impact on real people facing serious health concerns. Research at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School has created new hope for epilepsy patients.

A combination of electroencephalogram (EEG) data and clinical observations can help determine whether patients will respond to treatment, according to a study published in the journal Epilepsia. The researchers used a new statistical model that is 80 percent accurate in distinguishing between drug-resistant and drug-responsive generalized epilepsy.

“Traditionally, we had few tools available to help us predict whether a patient will do well and remain seizure free or continue to have seizures despite treatment with medications. This is difficult for patients to hear, especially when they are learning about their diagnosis for the first time,” says Brad Kamitaki, a neurologist at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School who treats epilepsy patients in New Jersey. “Epilepsy patients need to know more about their prognosis, and any additional information we can give them about their disease is valuable.”

About 3.4 million people in the United States, including 470,000 children, have epilepsy, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Antiseizure drugs limit the spread of seizures in the brain and work for about two-thirds of people with epilepsy. While other options include surgery, those with generalized epilepsy are not candidates for this treatment.

Thanks to donor support, Rutgers can deliver on its reputation as an academic, health, and research powerhouse. For more information on this study and other breakthroughs, please stay connected to Rutgers Today.

Student Food Pantries

Across the nation, food insecurity has posed a significant barrier to student success. Some students arrive on campus without a steady and healthy source of groceries or meals. Managing life as a student can be challenging under these conditions. Donors lend a helping hand to food-insecure students through support for Rutgers’ four student food pantries.

Since the pantries began opening at Rutgers, they have been available to any student facing food insecurity. Students can visit the pantries once a week or whenever they need help. The pantries stock their shelves with food and toiletries through donations generated by food drives, student efforts, and private giving. Recently, Rutgers donors rallied on Giving Tuesday to support the food pantries, ensuring that Rutgers can continue to meet students’ food needs.

Due to the primarily remote nature of instruction over the past year, visits to the pantries have declined. However, that decrease is not an indication of decreased needs. As we fully repopulated campuses this semester, visits steadily increased. The four pantries expect this pattern to continue, underlining the ongoing need for support.

Research suggests that nearly half of all college students worry about where they will find their next meal. Donor support for Rutgers’ food pantries gives students the food security they need to stay focused on their studies.

Rutgers Center for Adult Autism Services

The Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology created the Rutgers Center for Adult Autism Services (RCAAS) in 2016 to address a shortage of quality services that help adults with autism lead meaningful lives. The center also conducts research that informs the development of other programs for adults with autism.

Earlier this year, Rutgers opened the center’s new home on the Douglass campus to serve adults on the autism spectrum through vocational, academic, and recreational programs. The 10,000-square-foot facility is the first of its kind at a higher education institution in the United States.

The building creates an inclusive environment for all and addresses a growing need in the state and beyond. One in 32 people in New Jersey, and one in 54 people nationally, are on the autism spectrum. An estimated 50,000 children with autism “age out” of the K-12 education system each year in the U.S., with few options available to support their continued development.

Amy Gravino, a relationship coach at RCAAS, was diagnosed at age 11 as being on the autism spectrum. “I only wish [RCAAS] had existed when I was growing up,” she says. “It might have spared me from so many of the hardships that I faced navigating life after college. The goal of RCAAS is not to tell students on the spectrum who they are, but rather to allow them to be exactly who they are.”

The generosity of RCAAS donors has reaffirmed Rutgers’ place as a national leader in research, professional training, and practical services in support of adults who are on the autism spectrum.

A Message from Antonio D. Tillis

Chancellor, Rutgers University–Camden

The 2021–2022 academic year marked a return to our classrooms and our workspaces after 18 months of mostly virtual interaction. Throughout the pandemic, we have supported each other in ways that define Rutgers University–Camden as a nurturing and inclusive community. That community includes you, our donors, whose steadfast support makes it possible for us to meet the needs of students and the demands of our mission.

Dedicated to student success, Rutgers–Camden delivers unique learning experiences that expand classrooms into the world through our transformative civic engagement initiatives, our dedication to engaging students in original research opportunities (as exemplified by our annual Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity program), our immersive Learning Abroad program, and much more.

Here are a few examples of how Rutgers–Camden continues to serve our student population and enrich our community.

• The School of Nursing has distinguished itself throughout the pandemic as one of South Jersey’s most critical resources in the fight against COVID-19. School of Nursing students and faculty served more than 70,000 of our neighbors and family members at mass vaccination sites in Blackwood and Camden.
• The School of Business is piloting a peer-mentoring program that pairs a select group of first-year students with sophomores or juniors who will help them adjust to campus life and academics.
• In our Faculty of Arts and Sciences, a new graduate student center has opened at 211 North Fifth Street, providing graduate students with their own much-needed space for learning and relaxing.
• Rutgers Law School in Camden recently welcomed one of the largest and most diverse first-year (1L) classes in recent history. Some of these students will be the first to take the course “Law and Inequality” as it debuts this semester.

As a donor, you help make it all possible. The following report highlights the impact that you and other donors have at Rutgers–Camden. Although space prevents us from discussing every donor-supported fund, program, or research initiative, you can take pride in knowing that you make a difference no matter your area(s) of support. Your support ensures that opportunities, breakthroughs, and success stories like the ones highlighted below are possible at Rutgers–Camden.

I wish you continued good health and safety.

Camden College of Arts and Sciences

Research is an integral part of the Rutgers–Camden experience, and donor support creates opportunities for discovery at Camden College of Arts and Sciences. Every April, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences–Camden Office of the Dean hosts Research Week, which celebrates the research accomplishments of our students.

The week begins with a lecture and luncheon featuring the recipient of the previous year’s Arts and Sciences Faculty Fellowship. Doctoral and master’s students from the Graduate School–Camden participate in a Graduate Research Symposium and a Graduate School Student Paper Competition; the winner gives a keynote address.

At the Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity, students share research projects across a range of topics. Recent presentations have included a podcast about immigration, an investigation into fashion and microplastics, and an overview of COVID-19’s effect on Camden’s food system. Students learn about faculty-student research collaborations and campus resources to help them apply to prestigious programs like the Fulbright.

“Attending Rutgers–Camden has made it possible to pursue my dreams of becoming a scientist,” says senior Anthony Sbarra. Sbarra is working on two research projects: mathematical modeling for the spread of COVID-19 and a predictive model for food insecurity in Atlantic City. “Conducting this research is great because it could actually benefit others, which is something I’ve always wanted to do,” he says.

Thanks to continued donor support, students like Sbarra have the opportunity to explore their interests and make meaningful discoveries. This year’s Research Week begins April 11. Please check here for updates and additional information.

Rutgers Law School

Founded in 2012, the Immigrant Justice Clinic at Rutgers Law School is both a course and a student-staffed law office representing members of New Jersey’s immigrant community in humanitarian immigration matters. Clinic students also work to increase awareness of immigrant issues in the state’s criminal justice, child welfare, and domestic violence systems. Donor support for the clinic through the Hoffman Fund ensures that clinic clients have the best possible representation by Rutgers Law students, who work under the supervision of a licensed attorney.

Joanne Gottesman, clinical professor of law and director of the clinic, believes participating in a law clinic provides vital experience to Rutgers Law students. “Unlike most jobs or internships, clinic work is the only opportunity that actually puts students into the driver’s seat,” says Gottesman.

In addition to providing hands-on experience, the clinic makes an impact on the local community through direct client representation and community outreach, says Gottesman. Community outreach has included partnerships with St. Joseph’s Pro-Cathedral, the Camden Library, and Volunteers of America.

Donor support helps cover fees incurred by representing clinic clients. “If the clinic needs to hire a forensics expert, obtain a psychological evaluation for a client, order a transcript, or have a deposition, those are the things that cost money, and our clients don’t have the money,” says Gottesman.

“Working with our clients has a huge impact on our students, hearing what they have experienced,” Gottesman says. “Whether it was things they experienced in their home countries, things they experienced on their journey here, or in their lives here, they are stories of amazing strength and resilience.”

Raptor Pantry

Across the nation, food insecurity has posed a significant barrier to student success. Nearly half of all college students worry about where they will find their next meal. Donor support for the Raptor Pantry offers all Rutgers–Camden students the assistance they need to stay focused on their studies.

Since 2017, the Raptor Pantry has served students facing food insecurity. Students can visit the pantry any time they need extra help. The Raptor Pantry stocks its shelves with groceries and toiletries thanks to donor support, food drives, student organization efforts, and special initiatives like the Raptors vs. Raiders Food Drive Challenge. This friendly competition between the pantries in Camden and Newark is meant to raise awareness about food insecurity and put a dent in student hunger.

Due to remote learning during the 2020–2021 academic year, visits to the Raptor Pantry declined. But that decrease did not reflect a decrease in need. As students returned to campus in fall 2021, visits steadily increased. As a result, the Raptor Pantry will continue to rely on donor support to keep students from missing meals.

School of Nursing–Camden

The COVID-19 pandemic reinforced the role of nurses in our society—and the ever-increasing demand for them. The School of Nursing is training the next generation of nursing leaders, like Miriam Anukah.

After receiving her first degree from Rutgers University–New Brunswick, Anukah decided to continue her studies at Rutgers–Camden. “I wanted to take on a profession that gave me a sense of fulfillment,” she says. She was inspired by her mother, who has been a nurse for more than 20 years and recently obtained her doctorate in nursing practice. “Seeing her persevere and commit to her patients as a nurse was admirable and gave me the confirmation that I was making the right choice in picking this profession.”

Anukah is interested in progressive and intensive care. “There’s a sense of satisfaction knowing I brought a person back to good health, in whatever way I could. Full dedication to patients is required when working in this field, and regardless of what specialty a nurse commits to, providing care to those in need will always be a top priority.” Anukah is preparing for the National Council Licensure Examination and hopes to gain experience by working in a hospital setting. Afterward, she would like to transition to travel nursing to experience different health care settings and broaden her knowledge of the field.

Anukah appreciates the support donors provide the school. “In one way or another,” she says, “you have impacted many nursing students, including me.”

School of Business–Camden

Thanks to donor support, our students can set themselves apart from their peers through access to opportunities that provide personal and professional growth, like those offered through the Student Engagement, Empowerment, and Development (SEED) Office.

SEED is an innovative resource that strives to organize and expose our students to educational and experiential events and activities that prepare them for both success in college as well as a successful transition to the career of their choice. SEED affords business students the opportunity to learn more about themselves, the importance of planning and goal setting, their career interests, and various industries and occupations. All students will engage with the SEED team within their first year at RSBC, whether they are first-year or transfer students.

“The SEED Office is RSBC’s nucleus for student experiential learning activities. Our focus is on meaningful student engagement, critical skills development and relationship-building, which fosters confidence and enthusiasm to prepare them for leadership, successful post-graduation employment, and impactful life pursuits,” says Natalie Cox, SEED Officer for Internships. “We leverage co-curricular opportunities to transform and empower students as future business professionals, change-makers, ethical leaders, and empathetic advocates to add value for themselves, their communities, and prospective employers.”

On average, 600 students are enrolled in one of the professional skills and development courses each year. These are designed to prepare students to be career-ready – focusing on building their professionalism and work ethic while developing a greater self-awareness and growth mindset towards managing and preparing for their future careers. This fall, SEED kicked-off a peer mentorship pilot where a small cohort of experienced students offered strategies to mitigate academic and personal challenges for student mentees. Recruitment for additional mentors and mentees is ongoing.

For more information on SEED, please visit https://sec.camden.rutgers.edu/.

A Message from Margaret Marsh

Interim Chancellor, Rutgers University–Camden

During these challenging times, I hope you and your loved ones are staying safe and well. The public health threat posed by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has required Rutgers University–Camden to deliver the great majority of our courses online. Our academic year looks different, but Rutgers–Camden is as strong as ever, and we are optimistic about the future.

I am proud of how our students, faculty, and staff are demonstrating their resilience and generosity of spirit, and we are so grateful to our donors and alumni for their unwavering support during this difficult time. You are a crucial part of the Rutgers–Camden community. We will do everything we can to ensure our students receive the educational and cocurricular experiences that will enable them to succeed.

Rutgers–Camden is responding to the challenges of our world with spirit, determination, and innovation. Our faculty continue with their vital research, teaching, and service commitments. They are exploring ways to identify and treat COVID-19 and other illnesses. They are providing our leaders with critically needed expert perspectives on policy matters arising from this crisis. They are on the front lines of health care delivery in our communities and our hospitals. And they are making meaningful contributions to the boundaries of knowledge in all of their disciplines. They can do so because of your support, and I thank you for your confidence in our university’s future.

The following report provides a glimpse of how you and other donors have a positive impact on the Rutgers–Camden community and the world. Although it features only a few of the funds that our donors support, I hope you take pride in knowing you help make a difference at Rutgers. Your continued support makes success stories like these possible.

These are challenging times, but I am sustained by one very simple precept: I believe in the future of Rutgers–Camden. I know we will continue to grow as a center for innovation and excellence. We will find new ways to serve as an anchor institution for Camden and as an engine for growth here in South Jersey. And we will reaffirm our role as a full partner within Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.

Together, we will forge ahead with determination and courage to widen the opportunities that Rutgers–Camden can offer.

Help in Crossing the Finish Line

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, emergency funding has provided a lifeline to students hit hard by the crisis. This funding is a crucial resource for assisting students who have been harmed by illness, loss of jobs, housing and food insecurity, and other unexpected hardships.

The Faculty of Art and Sciences Dean’s Emergency Fund at Rutgers–Camden helps students fill in the gaps when they suddenly have trouble paying tuition or fees, or can’t afford meals, housing, or books. One of those students was Rosemarie Peña, who received her doctorate in May 2020. For Peña, assistance from the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Dean’s Emergency Fund meant she could continue her studies after she had exhausted her student loans.

“I am more than grateful for the Dean’s Emergency Fund, which allowed me to cross the finish line, relieved of this financial burden as I prepared for my dissertation defense under the added economic stress of the rising global pandemic,” says Peña.

Peña earned her first bachelor’s degree from Rutgers–Camden in 1982 and returned in 2008 as a nontraditional student. “My heartfelt thanks to all who make the Dean’s Emergency Fund available to struggling students,” she adds. “I will forever be appreciative of the support I received in 2020 that helped me, at long last, to actualize my dream to become Dr. Rosemarie Peña.”

A Vital Resource for Students in Need

The Chancellor’s Emergency Fund at Rutgers–Camden provides financial assistance to students facing unforeseen emergencies, such as accidents, illness, death of a primary caregiver, homelessness, and other life-changing events.

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, emergency funding has become even more critical. It is a crucial resource for students who have been impacted by this crisis. More than ever, donor support for emergency funding has provided a lifeline to students hit hard by the pandemic.

Support for the Chancellor’s Emergency Fund has enabled Rutgers–Camden to provide

• funds for books, so that students can keep up with their classes while dealing with other stresses and financial burdens
• emergency supplies for students
• meal cards for students who cannot afford to eat three times a day, helping them focus on school and not worry about their next meal
• food to students via the food pantry, which remained open throughout the summer when dining halls were closed
• loaner laptops, webcams, and internet boosters to ensure students can access their classes and coursework during remote instruction

Donors Fuel Law Scholarships

Rutgers Law School students in Camden and Newark benefit from more than $10 million in scholarship awards that are funded through the generosity of alumni and allocations from the law school. All admitted students are automatically considered for merit-based scholarships. Scholarship funding provides opportunities for hard-working students like Chris Velez-Vargas, a third-year law student.

Velez-Vargas is proud to be a Rutgers Law student. “I wanted to be at an institution that placed great value on the quality of my education,” he says. Aside from his coursework, he is an active member of the Minority Student Program, the Black Law Students Association, and the Latin American Law Student Alliance. He is editor in chief of the Rutgers Journal of Law and Religion and is a teaching assistant.

A law degree from Rutgers will help fuel his aspiration of becoming involved with criminal justice reform. He would like eventually to work with Congress to help introduce general educational development and cognitive therapy programs for incarcerated individuals, end all for-profit prisons, and reduce rates of recidivism by providing job and vocational training to New Jersey residents and others.

Velez-Vargas is grateful for the support that donors provide each year for Rutgers Law. “Thank you all for your generosity to our Rutgers community,” he says. “We all are incredibly grateful, and we appreciate the time, value, and effort you put in by contributing back to our school.”

Learn more about how your support makes a difference for Rutgers Law students in this video.

Preparing Tomorrow’s Nurse Educators

Rutgers School of Nursing–Camden students make a compassionate difference in countless lives. The General Nursing Scholarship ensures that these students become excellent nurses prepared to lead change and advance health wherever they work, regardless of financial circumstances.

The United States continues to need new registered nurses, especially since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the demand for registered nurses increases, so does the need for nurse educators. The School of Nursing has leveraged the General Nursing Scholarship Fund to help prepare and train qualified nursing students to become nurse educators.

Assistant professor Sangita Pudasainee-Kapri is a 2020 graduate of the School of Nursing’s Doctor of Nursing Practice Program. As a student, she received funding assistance from the school. She is grateful for the support she received. “Without financial support from the university, I would not have continued my full-time study and graduated within two years,” she adds. Now a faculty member, she is in a position to address the national nurse shortage and train the next generation of nurses. “I have always wanted to join in academia and contribute to university teaching and research. It is my pleasure to serve as a full-time faculty member at the Rutgers School of Nursing–Camden.”

Dr. Pudasainee-Kapri recognizes the challenge in overcoming the demand for both RNs and advanced practice nurses to meet the changing health care needs of our nation. “Despite many efforts and strategies from multiple organizations, nursing faculty shortages are projected to increase. Most importantly, there are not enough master and doctoral prepared graduates to meet the demands of nursing education. While organizations continue to search for solutions for this situation, I believe it is important for nursing colleges and universities to fill faculty positions so that they can enhance student enrollment capacity across undergraduate and graduate programs and fulfill the faculty need in classrooms, clinical sites, and research and skill labs.”

Thanks to donor support of the General Nursing Scholarship Fund, the School of Nursing–Camden can assist students like Dr. Pudasainee-Kapri to become nurse educators and help address the national demand for nurses.

Driven to Achieve His Dreams

Students at the Rutgers School of Business–Camden learn from internationally renowned faculty and participate in a curriculum that prepares them to make a name for themselves in the business world. Donor support for the school ensures that all students, regardless of their background, can benefit from a business education.

Emanuel Rodriguez, a sophomore, is a first-generation student double majoring in accounting and finance at the School of Business. He is also an Honors College student who has received a Distinguished Achievement Merit Scholarship and the Accounting and Impact Scholarship. Rodriguez is grateful for the financial support he receives and is motivated by donor generosity. “Having people believing in and supporting my education has been one of the most motivating things to my academic success,” he says. “Reducing my financial stress allows me to invest more time in studying, being involved, and reaching my dreams.”

Rodriguez takes full advantage of extracurricular offerings at Rutgers–Camden, serving as a mentor in the Rutgers University Student Executive program and as a Rutgers ambassador, and being a member of Beta Alpha Psi and the Scarlet Council. “I have never let an obstacle, disadvantage, or failure stop me from imagining my dream,” he says, “a dream that someday I will become an expert in accounting and finance. By assisting me, you will help me reach my dream of becoming an accounting professor by allowing me to spend more time learning from others, studying for classes, interning to develop skills, helping others, and spending less time stressing.”

Donor support for scholarships at the School of Business ensures that students like Rodriguez can attend Rutgers and pursue their dreams without the burden of financial worries.

Clearing a Path to College for ‘Strivers’

The Hill Family Center for College Access seeks to create a more robust college-going culture in the city of Camden and the region by providing the support and guidance high school students and their families need to assure students’ success in college. Trained undergraduate and graduate students serve as ambassadors, assisting the college “strivers” and their families in understanding higher education options, exploring career and academic interests, and securing financial aid.

The center was founded through the generosity of twin brothers Washington CCAS’61 and George CCAS’61 Hill, who grew up in Camden. Both brothers are members of the Rutgers Hall of Distinguished Alumni, the highest honor that can be bestowed upon a Rutgers graduate.

Iesha Cook, a senior at the Camden College of Arts and Sciences, says the Hill Center prepared her for Rutgers. “I was introduced to the Hill Center as a high school student,” she says. “I participated in workshops and loved my mentors, who helped push and prepare me for higher education.” Those workshops help high school juniors and seniors complete personal statements for college applications, create résumés, secure recommendations, manage deadlines, and prepare for standardized tests.

After starting at Rutgers–Camden, Cook became an ambassador at the center so she could help other strivers. “Knowing that I have made an impact on the lives of students that come from my city, Camden, by mentoring and being a role model has truly been an honor,” she says. “Because I have worked though the program, I can attest to the importance of the work we do at the Hill Center. I have grown immensely throughout this program, personally and professionally.”