(WESTFIELD, NJ) -- The New Jersey non-profit organization, More Than Bootstraps (MTB), announces the addition of Juliana Londoño to the advisory board. Advisory board members provide expertise and guidance to MTB as it builds a community of first-generation, underrepresented students who empower each other to access and succeed in higher education.

Juliana Londoño is a bilingual licensed mental health therapist. She works with children as young as five, all the way through the lifespan. Her niche population is the young adult, college student population. Juliana completed her clinical internships at Rowan College at Burlington County and Mercer County Community College, supporting students through navigating the stressors of academia as well as their many identities.

Born in Medellin, Colombia, Juliana moved to the United States at the age of three and grew up in Paterson, NJ. Raised by a single mother, she understands firsthand the complexities of navigating higher education as a first-generation college student.

Intentional mentorship, purposeful guidance, and transformational opportunities have helped Juliana achieve her goals. She notes, "I would not be who I am today without the incredible mentors and supporters I have had throughout the years. Joining MTB's Advisory Board allows me to pay it forward and support the mental wellness of first-generation college students to feel greater empowerment as they achieve academic greatness."

“We are thrilled to have Juliana join our board,” said Audrey Fisch, president of More Than Bootstraps. “Juliana will help us create a climate of wellness and self-efficacy so that our students are prepared to face the academic and non-academic challenges of higher education.”

Grants and donations to More Than Bootstraps fund the monthly stipends that allow the high school and college students in the program some time and space to devote to their professional development and college-going activities while still meeting their financial responsibilities. Interested donors can learn more here.

More Than Bootstraps is a nonprofit created by educators seeking to level the playing field and remove some of the substantial barriers that first-generation college students encounter in accessing and succeeding in higher education. More Than Bootstraps employs a near-peer mentoring model to create a community of success. College students from the community return to guide their younger peers in the community through the college search, application, and assimilation process. These leaders, working as a mentoring cohort, in turn strengthen their own college-going identities and improve their own chances of success in higher education.

Students are selected based on their desire to attend college and their commitment to the program rather than grade point average or test scores. All students in the MTB program receive stipends, laptop computers, and access to emergency resources to help them with the many non-tuition expenses of higher education.