A Business Management major wins a coveted Civic Fellowship and uses her mixed heritage to make a difference in her community.

Farmingdale continues to boast of excellent outcomes in many critical areas related to student success, and Angelique Roberson ’21 is among the best of the recent examples — and one who has been nationally recognized.

Roberson, a Wheatley Heights resident and Business Management major, won the coveted Newman Civic Fellowship last year. The prestigious fellowship is a year-long program that identifies and supports students who have demonstrated an investment in finding solutions for challenges facing their communities.

“Being awarded the Newman Civic Fellowship is an incredible honor,” says Roberson, who graduates this May. “I believe that I can expand my resources and my opportunities to help make a difference and give back to the community that taught me valuable lessons in life, and other communities like mine. From this, I hope to inspire others to become the best versions of themselves, to challenge themselves, exceed expectations, and break the status quo.”

Roberson is a first-generation African American/Latina student who has excelled at everything she does at the College and in the community. At Farmingdale, she carries a near-perfect grade-point average, has been named to the President’s List every semester, and is a member of the Golden Key International Honor Society. Her success has been shaped by her blended heritage — she has an immigrant Mexican mother and an African American father.

“My background shaped me as a person because it provided me the opportunity to experience a life full of diversity and different cultures,” she says. “It taught me to be open minded to other backgrounds, appreciative of the different cultures, and welcoming of everyone and anyone.”

Roberson is also a Research Aligned Mentorship (RAM) student. RAM is an esteemed program funded by a major grant awarded to Farmingdale by the United States Department of Education. Each academic year, 250 new Farmingdale students are selected for membership in this program, which provides exclusive co-curricular activities to its students.

She was recently presented the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence.

Roberson’s community activities include serving as a marketing intern with Girls Inc. of Long Island, volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, helping clean debris and pollution from Long Island beaches, and serving meals in soup kitchens.

“To see the faces on those we helped was an incredible feeling,” Roberson says. “To see them laugh, tell jokes, and enjoy the moment reminded me to enjoy the little moments, especially in the fast-paced life I seem to live.”