Middlesex College Students Attend Leadership Summit as Members of the NJ All-State Academic Team

Middlesex College alumna Samina Naseem and second-year student Mahi Sanghvi participated in the 2026 Student Leadership Summit at Brookdale Community College as members of the New Jersey All-State Academic Team. 

All-State Team honorees are members of Phi Theta Kappa (PTK), the national honor society for community colleges, and were among the invited student-leader delegation at the event. 

“Samina and Mahi have clearly already established themselves as leaders in the classroom at Middlesex College,” said Middlesex College President Mark McCormick. “All of us at the College want to support our students in continuing to develop and broaden their leadership skills through extracurricular activities and events like the Student Leadership Summit, where they have the opportunity to interact with student leaders from across New Jersey.” 

The summit focused on cultivating leadership skills and demonstrating leadership abilities in and outside the campus environment. 

“It was a great experience for me,” said Naseem, who graduated from Middlesex College with her associate degree in political science in 2025. “I am from Pakistan. For women, it was not a privilege to be a leader or be shown how to be a leader.” 

“If I could do it one more time, I definitely would,” said Sanghvi, who will graduate in May. “I learned so much from the other people in terms of their journey, the hardships they encountered, and the skills they relied on to get them through.” 

The New Jersey All-State Academic Team is comprised of two students from each community college in the state. 

“Being named to the team is a prestigious honor afforded to the highest-achieving student leaders who are poised to be the change our communities, state, and country truly need,” said Middlesex College PTK Advisor Charlotte Quigley. “Our students named to the 2026 New Jersey All-State Academic Team truly represent the spirit of the College and PTK: academic excellence, leadership, and a strong commitment to service.” 

Naseem, an Edison resident, is double majoring in political science and psychology at Rutgers University. She noted that she had not attended school for 16 years before enrolling at Middlesex College. 

“My dreams are very big,” said Naseem. “And I want to pursue them. I want to continue my education and become a diplomat.” 

Sanghvi, who went to school in India before moving to Edison in 2024, is waiting to hear back from prestigious four-year institutions including Princeton University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She plans to study mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and robotics. 

Sanghvi credits Middlesex College for allowing her to establish a foundation for academic success and leadership. 

“When I moved here, I was worried about academics. But when I got my grades for the first semester, I could not believe I had gotten a 4.0,” said Sanghvi. “Each semester meeting new professors and seeing how much they believed in me, it was nice to find my footing. That’s what Middlesex College has done for me. It’s given me the confidence to build me up to become the engineer I want to be.”