How Montclair’s Transfer Support Helped One Student Find Her Place and Her Purpose

On a January morning in the New Jersey Statehouse, Abigail Rodriguez learned that education policy work often comes down to catching a lawmaker’s attention between meetings – sometimes with just a flyer and a moment to make her case.

Shadowing a lobbyist with the New Jersey Education Association during its “Tier One for Everyone” pension campaign, the Montclair State University Political Science major watched legislators stream past.

“It was my first time lobbying, and I heard ‘no’ more often than ‘yes’ – a crash course in how messy and how meaningful education policy work can be,” she says.

For Rodriguez, that moment is part of a broader story: how Montclair’s strong transfer support, mentorship, and community helped her grow from an unsure transfer student into an emerging voice in the education policies shaping the profession.

From Community College to Montclair

Rodriguez’s path to Montclair started at County College of Morris, where she changed majors several times before finding what truly fit.

Montclair’s commitment to making the transfer process straightforward and supportive helped turn that next step into a natural move and gave her a clear path to get involved on campus. That support now includes a new Transfer Credit Equivalent Database that lets students preview how their courses might transfer before they even apply.

“I always tell other students: If you don’t know what you want to do, go to county college, then transfer to a four-year school,” she says. “It’s one of the best paths.”

Even with that sense of direction, stepping onto a larger campus felt daunting. “At first, when I came to Montclair, I felt nervous and scared,” she says. “There were a lot of ‘I don’t fit in. Where do I go? Where do I meet the right connections?’”

Getting involved changed that. “Being in a club really helped,” she says. “Student government helped me find a group where I could say, ‘Okay, this feels like home now.’” Feeling grounded at Montclair became a springboard for her work with the New Jersey Aspiring Educators Association, an arm of the NJEA that organizes and advocates for future teachers.

Putting Learning into Practice

Rodriguez hosts “Class in Session,” a podcast created through NJ Aspiring Educators that amplifies the voices of teachers, student teachers and advocates across the state, with episodes that openly address mental health and well-being in schools.

Her advocacy doesn’t stop with the podcast. Rodriguez is also co‑creator of the New Jersey Coalition for Sustainable Equality & Educational Justice, a group focused on ensuring that school construction and renovation projects are done responsibly and with equity in mind.

She has also been selected for U.S. Sen. Andy Kim’s NextGen Leadership Training, which teaches the fundamentals of running effective campaigns and organizing at the community level.

Thriving as a Commuter Student

Rodriguez commutes more than an hour to Montclair’s campus. She grew up in Mount Olive and recently moved to Blairstown. “From Blairstown it’s about an hour and ten,” she says. “But it’s worth it. I love the energy of campus, but I also love going home to a quieter, rural environment. I always say I have the best of both worlds – Hannah Montana style.”

She knows many commuters worry they will miss out on campus life. “I tell them: Attend something. Please, just do something for yourself. You’ll thank yourself later.”

She points to Montclair’s commuter events, pit stops and student organizations as the structures that made it easier to plug in, even with a long drive.

Showing up became her guiding principle, and it led to one unexpected opportunity: making Puerto Rican mofongo on camera with Montclair President Jonathan Koppell for a future episode of “Cooking with Koppell.”

As she prepares to graduate in May 2026, Rodriguez still sometimes thinks about how unlikely this moment once felt.

“I never thought I’d graduate from college because my path felt so all over the place,” she says. “I never envisioned myself at a four-year institution. Even now, getting my senior pictures back, it feels like imposter syndrome. I’m 25, and I finally did it,” she adds. “It feels good to finally see the checkered flag.”

Ready to Start Your Montclair Journey?

Transfer to Montclair with Confidence

• Join us on Tuesday, March 10 for our Transfer Open House.
• Use our new Transfer Credit Equivalent Database to preview how your courses might transfer before you apply.
  • Enter your coursework from other institutions to see how they translate to Montclair courses and fulfill degree requirements.
• Take advantage of Montclair’s partnership with community colleges through a 2+2 Program for a supportive pathway:
  • Work with advisors from Montclair and your community college to complete your AA or AS in two years.
  • Upon graduation and meeting program criteria, transfer to Montclair with junior standing and all general education requirements waived.
  • Begin upper-level courses right away.
• Explore accredited online programs for transfer students with 45+ college credits, including Business Administration, Economics, Family Science and Human Development, Liberal Studies, Psychology and RN to BSN.
• The transfer application deadline for Fall 2026 is April 15.