CRANFORD, NJ – Union College of Union County, New Jersey is proud to announce that student Junaid Ilyas, of Roselle Park, has been selected as a Kaplan Leadership Scholar. Ilyas is one of only 11 students selected nationwide as a Kaplan Leadership Scholar.
The Kaplan Leadership Scholar Program, which is a part of the Kaplan Educational Foundation, targets students at two-year schools who demonstrate financial need, leadership potential, and educational acumen.
While pursuing his degree in engineering at Union, Ilyas also serves as a tutor to his fellow students in the Academic Learning Center and is an American Honors student. Regarding Ilyas’ future, he plans to further his education by pursuing a bachelor’s and master’s degree in mechanical engineering, with a career goal of being a vehicle engineer. Specifically, he plans to be a part of the innovation side of vehicle design, creating ideas that he believes “other gear-heads would go crazy over.”
“Junaid is a dedicated student and is a great example of hard work resulting in tremendous opportunity,” states Union President Dr. Margaret M. McMenamin. “The financial support provided by the Kaplan Educational Foundation is transformative, and we are proud of Junaid for being one of only 11 students across the country to be selected for this honor.” Ilyas is the fourth student from Union selected as a Kaplan Leadership Scholar. Marlon Artega (Union ’22) shared his experience being selected as a Scholar, which can be found here.
Union College is a public, comprehensive community college that provides quality, affordable, accessible educational programs to the greater Union County region. It is the first of New Jersey’s 18 two-year colleges, serving both career-minded and transfer-oriented students since 1933. Union was named a semifinalist for the 2023 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. For more information on Union, go to https://www.ucc.edu/ and for more information on the Kaplan Leadership Scholar program, go to https://www.kaplanedfoundation.org/