Meet the Class of 2029: Inspired by Their Families to Change the World

School of Nursing-Camden 
Rutgers University-Camden

Twin sisters Isabella and Gabriella Albert have lived their whole lives in lockstep with one another.

As babies and toddlers, they ate, played and slept on the same schedule. They’ve been in the same classes together from kindergarten through high school. They compete in the same sport – tennis – and even share a minivan they saved up for together.

This fall, the identical twins’ shared tradition continues at Rutgers University–Camden where both are studying to become nurses – they have the exact same courses and schedule – and are competing on school’s tennis team – as doubles, naturally.

“Me and Gabby make jokes that we are probably going to end up neighbors or live in one of those side-by-side houses,” said Isabella of their post graduate plans.

But first, the pair who’ve shared a bedroom their whole lives will spend one year living separately on campus. 

“We both are sad, but at the same time happy to experience this once,” said Gabby. “It will be a fun journey for sure.” 

The twins are excited to be reunited this with their older sister, Rutgers-Camden sophomore, Grace, who is also a nursing major and member of the tennis team.  

“They knew as soon as I said I was going to Rutgers-Camden, that that’s where they were going,” said Grace. “Whatever I end up doing, they end up doing.”

And Isabella and Gabby would be the first to tell you, they wouldn’t want it any other way.

“We come as a trio,” said Isabella.

“Triple threat,” added Gabby.

Only 15 months apart from her twin sisters, Grace said their closeness and similar interests were never manufactured or pushed by their parents. They just genuinely enjoy each other’s company.   

“It’s not a copycat thing or a competition,” said Gabby.

“It’s like we are a team,” said Isabella, finishing her twin's sentence. “It’s like we are built-in best friends.”

Just as they’ve all supported one another all along, the three from Greenwich, N.J., are looking forward to learning, competing and exploring college together.

Though all three are pursuing nursing degrees at the same school, they are each drawn to different niches in the field. Gabby is considering becoming either a nurse anesthetist or traveling nurse. Bella would love to work with expectant mothers and newborns. And Grace is still exploring her options.

“People find it so interesting that we don’t want to do different things. But I would go on vacation with them or live with them,” said Grace. “I no longer have to drag friends with me places. I know they will come with me.”

School of Environmental and Biological Sciences 
Rutgers University-New Brunswick

Josuel Barrios was raised on Rutgers Pride.

“I grew up with a lot of Rutgers spirit, going to the football games and Rutgers Day,” said Barrios, whose mom, Marizeo Mina, is a 2006 Cook College graduate. “My favorite was visiting the Cook Farm and seeing all the pigs and animals.”

This fall, Barrios, 18, is following in his mom’s footsteps as an incoming School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS) student majoring in environmental business economics. He is grateful for the path his mom blazed for him as a first-generation college student and long-time university employee, working as a deputy lab manager with the Public Health Research Institute at Rutgers-Newark.

“I’ve learned a lot from her experiences,” he said. “Since she also works for Rutgers, I’ve had the opportunity to meet all her co-workers. It opened my eyes to this new world and different cultures.”

The Butler High School graduate, who competed at the international level with the business club DECA and co-led his school’s Social Justice Club, is excited to study the relationship between economic activity and the natural environment.

“My career goal is to end up in a corporate setting like JP Morgan with an understanding of policies and practices that affect the environment so I can better shape our community,” he said.

Barrios said his mom was thrilled when he announced his decision to attend Rutgers-New Brunswick and SEBS.

“She knew I was going to go to Rutgers, but she didn’t know I was going chose her school,” he said. “It was a big moment for her when we toured the school during Admitted Students Day. When she was back on campus, she told me all these fun stories about her time taking care of the horses at Cook Farm.”

When his family attended football games, Barrios looked forward to the possibility of one day sitting in the raucous Student Section of SHI Stadium. But this year he’ll be even closer to the game, taking the field as a baritone player with the Scarlet Marching Knights. 

“I’m so excited to play with the marching band,” said Barrios, who traveled back and forth to campus during August for rehearsals and moved in nearly two weeks before classes to ramp up ahead of the first home game Aug. 28. “We are going to perform at MetLife Stadium this year. It’s been a dream of mine to do that.”

School of Arts and Sciences 
Rutgers-New Brunswick

Michele Hernandez Sanchez once dreamed of becoming a lawyer, but she changed her mind after her brother was diagnosed with leukemia.

“During afternoons at the hospital, I realized that doctors and nurses don't just care for patients, but for the overall well-being of parents and family members,” said Hernandez, who was 9 at the time.

Now that her brother has recovered, Hernandez wants to support other families as a pediatric oncologist or emergency medicine doctor. She plans to major in biological sciences.

Hernandez feels lucky to have reached that milestone with help from the Rutgers Future Scholars (RFS) program, which provides ongoing enrichment for first-generation prospective college students who live in Rutgers host cities and tuition reimbursement for those accepted into the university.

Over half a dozen summers, the program brought Hernandez to Rutgers-New Brunswick for classes ranging from resume basics to lyric writing. Program leaders also issued reminders about filling out the FAFSA and suggested scholarships to pursue.

“As a first-gen student, I had my parents’ example of what it means to be a hard worker, but I didn’t know anything about college, and this program was just a good overall help,” Hernandez said. “I’m forever grateful to have my tuition covered so I won’t have to take out loans. The program is a big reason I am where I am, and no matter where I end up, I’ll always have a family with RFS.”

During her years at the selective New Brunswick Health Sciences Technology High School, Hernandez not only played softball, danced ballet and served on the student council but prepared for her career by shadowing healthcare professionals and receiving the New Jersey State Seal of Biliteracy for proficiency in Spanish.

“My principal always used to say that the more languages you speak, the more valuable you are,” she said.

At Rutgers, Hernandez hopes to join a dance club and the Mexican American Student Association, and to volunteer at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital. She’d also like to start an organization that finds placements for homeless dogs.

“I can't imagine any dog not having a home or being mistreated,” she said. “That’s why, when I retire, I want to live on a ranch with a bunch of dogs that I’ve rescued. That's my final goal.”

Mason Gross School of the Arts
Rutgers University-New Brunswick

As soon as Dylan Bates heard about the World Stinging Nettle Eating Championships while on a family vacation in England, he just had to compete.

It didn’t matter that he knew nothing about the competition or whether the plant was edible. It didn’t matter that the event was taking place the next day and he had not prepared. Bates, an incoming film student at Mason Gross School of the Arts, wanted to compete because it was an opportunity to make a video.

“I thought it would be funny, and truthfully, just making other people laugh and to be entertaining is all I need,” he said.

He didn’t win, but a photo of him – in his red mushroom hat, biting down on a nettle leaf and somehow simultaneously wincing and smiling – was captured by Getty Images – a widely used source of stock and editorial content – forever associating his face to the competition. And he made that video for his YouTube channel.

Bates loves movies and television and grew up with YouTube, watching videos and, later, making videos for the platform, but his ambitions aren’t limited to becoming a “YouTuber.”

“I just got fascinated by the idea of YouTube as an art form,” he said. “And I'm not saying I make anything sophisticated, deep or with complex moral questions, but I do like to think that, to some extent in the 21st century, online video creation is going to be the art form.”

He wants to work in the creative side of the film industry. Even if he doesn’t become a filmmaker, he said he’d be happy to be what he called “film adjacent.”

“I'd love to be a writer for a sitcom, for example, or an editor for movies,” he said. “Anything that involves any sort of creativity within entertainment, I would absolutely adore.”

Bates grew up in Massachusetts and has no connection to New Jersey. He chose Rutgers because he wanted to explore somewhere new.

“I love New England with my whole heart; I love Massachusetts, but I’ve spent 17 years here. I’d like to find another place to live now,” said Bates, who turned 18 last month. “I really like just how diverse and multicultural New Jersey is. That was such a big appeal to me. I genuinely like how many different cultures you get in one space and how connected it is to the rest of the world.”

He said his parents, Mark and Rachel, have always encouraged him to pursue his desire to entertain.

“I think they're glad that I'm pursuing something that will, in the end, make me happy,” he said.

Rutgers Business School
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
Rutgers University-New Brunswick Honors College

In Joseph Anthony Candelaria’s household, a shared mission brings everyone together. No matter what else is going on, he and his parents unite every day to care for his 14-year-old sister, who suffers from physical and mental developmental disabilities caused by a rare genetic condition.

“We all care about her incredibly deeply, and as I've gotten older, I've grown from playing with her to feeding her and putting her to bed every night,” he said of his sister, who has tetrasomy 18p, a chromosomal disorder.

That experience has inspired Candelaria, of Roselle, to create therapies that will prevent developmental disabilities or decrease their severity. He first plans to graduate with a double major in finance and biotechnology. Then, he aims to gain financial independence by working in investment banking before forming his own genetic engineering firm, which will create treatments for conditions like his sister’s.

“I want to attack the fundamental issues behind these conditions that prevent people from having an equal chance at life,” he said. “I’d like to help correct educational inequities and healthcare issues for people with developmental disabilities, too.”

As a student at the selective Union County Magnet High School, Candelaria started that work by developing a mobile app that uses interactive icons, text-to-speech and AI to help users communicate complete sentences.

“Creating it was really difficult,” he said of the app, which he soon plans to make publicly available. “It involved prompt engineering to make sure that AI used only the information given and didn’t blow sentences out of proportion.”

Candelaria is grateful that his high school helped him develop those kinds of strategic thinking skills, which also enabled him to lead the school’s robotics team — as scouting manager — to its highest district placement in a decade.

He relied on those skills again this summer, when he got a head start on his university education by completing two for-credit courses through Rutgers Business School’s B-STAR program. Now, Candelaria looks forward to more classes, as well as internships and extracurriculars — from participating in career-oriented programs such as Road to Wall Street and cultural organizations such as the Rutgers Association of Philippine Students to niche clubs such as the Rutgers Rhythm Games Club.

He expects all those endeavors to broaden his perspective.

“By pursuing an interdisciplinary path,” he said, “I hope to build something lasting, something greater than myself.”

Rutgers School of Nursing
Rutgers Health

Alexandria Vass’s paternal grandparents were a huge part of her childhood, and now their example is helping to shape her future.

From her grandpa, Vass learned to be outgoing. From her nana, she learned to find joy in caring for others.

Those characteristics will help her, she says, when she follows in her grandmother’s footsteps and becomes a nurse. Vass is starting her journey as a student in the bachelor’s degree program at Rutgers School of Nursing, which will prepare her for licensure as a registered nurse.

“I always wanted to be a nurse because I had an inside view of that life,” said Vass, whose grandmother worked as an LPN at St. Peter’s University Hospital. “I thought it must be a good job, because even when my nana had a hard day, I’d see her full of enthusiasm about going back to work the next morning.”

Vass’s parents divorced when she was 2, and after that, she mainly lived with her grandparents in Franklin Township. “They became my foundation,” she said, “teaching me the meaning of compassion, patience and strength.”

Vass put those principles into action many times, from helping her grandparents after surgeries to caring for a newborn and an older child while their mother, Vass’s aunt, was hospitalized. Vass also has fond memories of volunteering at St. Peter’s and babysitting alongside her grandmother, which led to some proud moments teaching daily living skills to a child with autism.

She applied the same tenets at the Union County Technology, Engineering, Architecture, Math, and Science Charter School, where she was valedictorian and accumulated 24 college credits through dual enrollment at Union County College. She also played varsity tennis for Plainfield High School.

Growing up near Rutgers-New Brunswick, Vass dreamed she would someday roam the campus as a student. Now, she’s excited about studying there to become a nurse and experience caring for mothers and babies during her clinical rotations. She also looks forward to exploring painting or sculpture, joining a tennis or pickleball club and volunteering.

Her longer-term plans solidified last year after her grandparents sold their home in a decision to downsize.

“I want to get my bachelor's. I want to get a great job. I want to go back for my master’s. And I want to buy back my grandparents’ house,” Vass said. “My dream is to live there. If I can't, I can't, but at least I'll finish with an amazing career that I love.”

School of Arts and Sciences-Newark 
Rutgers University-Newark

For as long as he can remember, William Torres has been an artist with a daily drive to create.

“Even as a kid,” he said, “I found comfort and freedom in drawing when words didn’t feel like enough.”

His dreams for the future were formed while watching animated films.

“The way each character came to life was so magical,” he said. “Knowing that someone was able to create these characters and express them through design and movement was fascinating.”

Torres first explored cartooning through an animation training program at the Institute of Music for Children in Elizabeth. Now, the incoming first-year student hopes that four years as a fine arts major at Rutgers-Newark will help him land a job with Disney or Pixar.

“Some alumni who majored in fine arts have worked on movies like ‘Frozen,’ ‘Ice Age’ and even ‘Sesame Street’ for companies like Walt Disney and Warner Brothers,” he said. “I want to be like them.”

Torres’s plans also include other artistic endeavors.

“I’m hoping to one day show my artwork in galleries and even become a producer in movies,” he said. “I hope to master my craft and showcase all sorts of animations and drawings I’ve put together.”

The Hillside resident already feels he belongs at Rutgers-Newark, having visited the campus many times with his mother, who serves as administrative coordinator for the infectious diseases program within Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. Torres was also connected with Rutgers-Newark during his junior and senior years of high school, when he spent Saturdays participating in the school’s PreCollege Academy for local students, which provided academic enrichment, career exploration and college readiness.

“It helped prepare me for college before I even started,” he said.

After courses in carpentry and automotive technology in high school — as well as participation in the U.S. Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, which gave him the chance to distribute food to neighbors in need — Torres feels even more ready to head to campus and pursue his goals.

In addition to enjoying his classes, he said, “I’m hoping to intern at a studio, gallery or museum. Rutgers is where I can really grow and prepare for the future.”