July 29, 2026

Access Isn’t the Finish Line: Inside EOF’s Push to Carry Scholars Into Careers

A network of mentors and alumni – that’s how a partnership between Montclair State University and seven other NJ colleges gives first-generation students more than a degree

Posted in: Admissions, University

Franco Leon, wearing a red EOF T-shirt sits with hands clasped, smiling and looking up attentively during a conference session. — Franco Leon, center, isn't waiting for graduation to build his network: the incoming Psychology major asked keynote speaker Tiffany "The Budgetnista" Aliche '01 if she needed an intern. (Photo by Ian Peters)

Quick summary:

The Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) capped its Summer Academy with a statewide conference for incoming first-generation and underserved scholars.
Students get access to a network of mentors, alumni and partner colleges that follow them through college into their careers.
Nearly 95% of first-year Montclair State University’s EOF scholars stay enrolled and more than 70% graduate within six years, among the highest rates in New Jersey.

When Montclair State University’s Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) hosted incoming freshmen from EOF programs at colleges across the state – many from underserved school districts and the first in their families to attend college – the real story wasn’t the number of students in the room. It was what happens to them after they leave it.

This year’s gathering on July 23 brought together scholars from EOF programs statewide to mark the close of their summer academies: weeks of coursework, mentoring and advising designed to launch a new class of scholars at each of their home institutions. None of that is accidental – least of all at Montclair.

More Than a Degree

Dr. Daniel Jean, Montclair’s Associate Provost for Educational Opportunity and Success Programs and an EOF alumnus himself, has spent his career making the case that a Montclair education is more than a degree.

It’s mentors, alumni and partner institutions – a network of meaningful professional connections that turns opportunity into social mobility.

About 100 incoming freshmen in Montclair’s own EOF program are on that path this year — given a real shot at careers and advanced degrees through quality mentoring, tutoring and advising.

Close-up of students in red Montclair State EOF T-shirts raising their arms and cheering with their mouths open in excitement. — Enthusiasm is high among the first-year EOF scholars and peer mentors from Montclair and partner campuses at the Empowerment Conference. (Photo by Ian Peters)

Franco Leon, an incoming freshman planning to study psychology, is one of them. Five weeks into his Summer Academy, he already had both: “My peer leaders are great – Chloe and Jay. Love them. They really fostered that family environment for me. And to top it all off, Melissa Pecora – she’s my advisor, and any questions I have, even outside of EOF, she always answers for me.”

According to Jean, Montclair’s EOF program has quietly produced thousands of professionals, educators and community leaders who went on to give back exactly what was given to them.

Ashon Lanada ’22 exemplifies the network. “It all starts with how I entered Montclair,” says Lanada, pointing back to his own college experience.

Coming into Montclair was a culture shock, Lanada says, but he learned to open himself up to different avenues, departments and programs. He came in undeclared and left with a degree in Business Administration and a concentration in Management – along the way serving as Student Government President – crediting his growth to “mentorship, simply because I was exposed to people that I necessarily did not have back home.

Today, he holds an MBA from Seton Hall University, where he works as a Residence Coordinator, passing that mentorship on daily: “It’s the moments where I see students after the fact and see how they’ve grown over the year – and having them thank me at the end of it – that really changes how I view this role.”

“I was once the kid asking for the phone numbers and asking for the emails,” he says, “but now I have students doing that for me, and the payoff is always, always worth it.”

Ashon Lanada, wearing a gray blazer, sets up a laptop and sound equipment on stage, with a screen behind him displaying Montclair State University and partner college logos. — Full circle: Ashon Lanada ’22 returned to Montclair to DJ this year’s Empowerment Conference. (Photo by Ian Peters)

A Statewide Coalition

Now in its 14th consecutive year, the EOF Empowerment Conference drew 575 participants representing Montclair and partnering institutions:

EOF – Bloomfield College of Montclair State University
EOF – Caldwell University
EOF – Passaic County Community College
EOF – Ramapo College of New Jersey
EOF – Rowan College at Burlington County
EOF – Saint Elizabeth University
TRIO – Upward Bound, Montclair State University

“This is always one of the most meaningful and impactful portions of the Summer Academy,” says Dr. Rahjaun Gordon, Senior Director of EOF and Success Programs. “The collaborative efforts of other EOF programs serving as co-sponsors for this event not only allow us to avoid carrying the pressure of the event alone, but also give all EOF scholars from various programs a chance to build connections among each other, creating a statewide EOF community. Everyone has a hand in supporting this event, and the scholars across the various programs benefit immensely.”

Gordon attributes the program’s strong retention and graduation rates to the quality of mentoring, tutoring, resources and advising scholars receive starting with the Summer Academy, when they take six college credits for free.

Keynote speaker Tiffany 'The Budgetnista' Aliche speaks into a microphone on stage, with an image of a hand holding cash projected on the screen behind her. — Keynote speaker Tiffany “The Budgetnista” Aliche ’01, a New York Times best-selling personal finance expert and Montclair alumna, takes questions from EOF Summer Academy scholars during the Empowerment Conference. (Photo by Ian Peters)

A Keynote with the Same Message

This year’s keynote speaker put a name and a public face to that same throughline. Alumna Tiffany “The Budgetnista” Aliche ’01 – the author and personal finance educator featured in the Netflix documentary “Get Smart with Money” – graduated from Montclair with a degree in Business Administration and a concentration in Marketing, and wrote her first book on personal finance while working as a preschool teacher, turning a Montclair credential into a national platform on financial literacy.

Aliche opened her talk by asking the room if anyone knew a millionaire. Then came the reveal: now they did – her.

“I’ve intentionally created my life. You can too,” Aliche told the conference. “Every experience I had at Montclair has led to who I am today.”

Leon took that literally. During the Q&A, he raised his hand and asked Aliche if she could use an intern.

She told him to reach out and stay persistent. “As soon as I got out of the meeting, I instantly DMed her on Instagram,” Leon said.

“I feel like if I could learn the business side of psychology, the same way that she learned from others’ past, that would help. She mentioned things about marketing and different ways to market yourself, and I said, you only live once – why not just ask and learn everything I can from her? She’s more successful than me and she knows a lot more than me. I’d like to learn her wisdom.”

Interested in learning more about Montclair’s Educational Opportunity Fund – or becoming part of its network as a mentor or volunteer? Visit the EOF program page to find out how to get involved.