Middlesex College to Princeton University Pipeline is Up and Running

The goal is clear, to give Middlesex College students a taste of an Ivy League education and help put them on a path that could lead to transferring to an elite four-year college.

“We see this as a big success for our Honors Program culture,” said Cristobal Espinoza-Wulach, Co-Director of the Middlesex College Honors Program.

“This is a great example of how our Honors Program can be a resource for high-performing students at local high schools who can see that they can come here and then get into a program at Princeton.”

Middlesex College was one of just two schools to have 10 students accepted into the Princeton TSI.

Emily Fox is one of the students currently in the program. She is entering her second year at Middlesex College studying history. She learned about the TSI program after joining the honors community at Middlesex College and was nominated by Dr. Denise Rompilla, who teaches History of Women and Art History at the College.

“When I applied to TSI, I specifically said in my application that my favorite part of my college experience so far has been the challenge, and it still very much is, especially going into this program,” said Fox.

“Not only does this program grant us invaluable resources for our futures at four-year institutions, but it also grants us the opportunity to prove to not only our instructors here but to ourselves that we are students capable of Ivy League-level work. That to me is just so exciting.”

The South River native said the workload hasn’t been too intimidating — so far — and the caliber of work is inspiring.

“The staff of TSI, Dr. Keith Shaw, Dr. Jordan Reed, Queenie Reda and Lance Marsh, have all been amazing. They are so receptive to our needs, both as a group and individually. From day one, I have felt so wholly supported by the staff, which has helped to ease a lot of the nerves associated with attending this program,” said Fox.

“I started this journey with an open mind, and here I am doing something I never could have pictured for myself: attending Princeton University. I cannot wait to see what the rest of this journey holds for me.”

Nine Middlesex College students (one had to opt out because of an academic opportunity at Rutgers University) are among this year’s cohort. Fox is joined by Jacek Brys, Patrickia Duncan, Adam Elshanawany, Djulieta Ismaili-Jean, Olivia Kamau, Theodore Kozak, Kimberly McGraw and Jianna-Marie Patino.

This is the first year of the program and will help deepen the relationship between the two institutions.

“Our hope is that when our students come back they can share their experiences with other students at Middlesex and use all that experience when applying for schools when they leave here,” said Espinoza-Wulach. “We want to open the doors to highly-selective colleges.”

For more information about honors programs, visit middlesexcollege.edu/academics/honors-program.