For Rowan College at Burlington County student Omolayo Akinwole, transferring from Landmark University in Nigeria after earning her bachelor’s to a university in the United States became more than an academic endeavour; it has evolved into an unexpected journey of reinvention.
Beginning in 2020, Rowan College at Burlington County student Sherria Hannah faced challenges that few could have imagined. First, she lost her mother. A week later, she had a stroke, from which she fortunately recovered. The next year, in 2021, she developed Guillain-Barré syndrome, an autoimmune disease that affects the body’s nervous system, taking from her the ability to walk for nine months.
When Rowan College at Burlington County student Yvonne Tai goes up on stage to retrieve her diploma at winter commencement, it won’t be the last time she’ll be up there. Because at spring 2026 commencement, she’s coming back, and not just for the completion of one more degree or two, but for three degrees. Once her time at RCBC is complete, Tai will have earned four associate degrees in two years.
In summer 2024, twelve RCBC students became student models. In 2025, six more Barons joined, appearing in campus marketing materials.
Each student also took the time to sit down and tell their story. Where they came from, their life at RCBC, and where they’re going after, they divulged it all. Read on to learn more about each student in this Q&A format.
Samarah Schwaeble
What was your first impression of RCBC?
In summer 2024, twelve RCBC students became student models. In 2025, six more Barons joined, appearing in campus marketing materials.
Each student also took the time to sit down and tell their story. Where they came from, their life at RCBC, and where they’re going after, they divulged it all. Read on to learn more about each student in this Q&A format.
Soshyl Narvaez
A little over two years ago, Michele Moyer faced complications in her professional career. Her health conditions made it difficult for her to be around sugary desserts, which were prominent in her role as a pastry chef. While she worked hard to move up to where she was in the culinary world, after four years of this dilemma, she knew it was time to leave her cooking career behind and begin the search for a new path.
Rowan College at Burlington County alum Marcus Juanites always knew he wanted to cook. Young and ambitious, Juanites applied to the college’s Culinary Arts program right out of high school when he was 17 and never looked back.
Juanites now works in Philadelphia at a French-style restaurant called Fleurs as a line cook. His main role is on the grill station, but he has recently picked up working on the sauté station, prepping for the day by turning appliances on, getting utensils, warming up sauces, and gathering proteins.
Rowan College at Burlington County student Inaya-Shakeira N. Odd was homeschooled from fourth grade until graduation. During this time, she became passionate about all things culinary, sitting in front of the TV watching cooking shows and hanging out in the kitchen watching her mother bake.
These experiences made Odd say, “‘You know what? I think this is something I want to do.’”
A new alumni trustee has joined Rowan College at Burlington County’s Board of Trustees. RCBC graduate Kershie Ambroise was sworn in at the college’s board meeting on Sept. 16.
Ambroise, originally from Haiti, emigrated to the United States in 2018 with her mother and two older sisters. She enrolled at RCBC first as a nursing student before switching to the 3+1 Health Studies program.
It was a long journey from São Paulo, Brazil, to Burlington, New Jersey, for Rowan College at Burlington County alum Enzo Lima de Freitas. But it’s a journey that has taken him even further, to the city that never sleeps as a newly transferred Columbia University student.