(PDF) (DOC) (JPG)January 27, 2022

MAHWAH, N.J. — Ramapo student Mellanie Trenado ’22 will be putting the design skills she has learned at the College to good use when she visits Tokyo this summer. The Bergenfield, N.J., native received a prestigious Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship and will spend a month as an intern for Metropolis Japan, the country’s number one English language magazine.

“I am so grateful for this once in a lifetime opportunity,” said Mellanie, a Visual Communications Design major, who currently is a design intern for the College’s Marketing and Communications department. Among her duties are creating digital and social media graphics, flyers and marketing materials for different departments across the College. She also designed the selections for the 2022 Senior T-Shirt which will be voted on by students and available for this year’s graduates.

“In her role as a designer, I know I can trust her to not only ask the right questions about a project, but also produce professional work, which can be seen around campus, and most importantly, accept critiques on her work,” said Janelle Ferraro ’14, Mellanie’s supervisor in the Office of Marketing and Communications who also worked closely with her in the Trillium Magazine class and the College Yearbook Club. “Her drive to create, learn and be an active member of the campus truly shines a light on her dedication to her major but also her future endeavors. I’m excited to see where Mell’s talents take her in the future and how her experience abroad helps shape that future.”

Mellanie said her interest in Japanese culture was peaked when she was working on a design project for Ramapo’s International Education office last year. “I read the testimonials of students who had traveled abroad and realized that nothing was really stopping me from traveling. I was fully committed to the idea and chose Japan.”

She attended an information meeting on campus about the Gilman Awards, worked hard on her application and received her acceptance letter last fall.

“I am overjoyed and so thankful that my efforts paid off and that the Gilman team took the time to listen to my story,” Mellanie said, adding that she has begun taking language lessons at the local Japanese-American Society and will continue to do so until her departure this summer.

The U.S. Department of State’s Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program, established in 2001 and named after the late Congressman Benjamin A. Gilman from New York, enables students of limited financial means to study or intern abroad, providing them with skills critical to national security and economic prosperity. Award recipients are chosen by a competitive selection process and must use the award to defray eligible study or intern abroad costs. These costs include program tuition, room and board, books, local transportation, insurance, international airfare, passport and visa fees.

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About Ramapo College

Ramapo College of New Jersey is the state’s premier public liberal arts college and is committed to academic excellence through interdisciplinary and experiential learning, and international and intercultural understanding. The comprehensive college is situated among the beautiful Ramapo Mountains, is within commuting distance to New York City, was named one of the 50 Most Beautiful College Campuses in America by CondeNast Traveler, and boasts the best on-campus housing in New Jersey per Niche.com. Established in 1969, Ramapo College offers bachelor’s degrees in the arts, business, data science, humanities, social sciences and the sciences, as well as in professional studies, which include business, education, nursing and social work. In addition, the College offers courses leading to teacher certification at the elementary and secondary levels, and offers graduate programs leading to master’s degrees in Accounting, Applied Mathematics, Business Administration, Contemporary Instructional Design, Computer Science, Creative Music Technology, Data Science, Educational Leadership, Nursing, Social Work and Special Education, as well as a Doctor of Nursing Practice.

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