Eradicating illiteracy and educating women in Ghana are Angela Bamford's longterm goals.
BEDMINSTER -- Angela Bamford is a determined young woman whose goals are to educate women and eradicate illiteracy in her home country of Ghana.
The former Milford resident took a big step in that direction when she graduated from Raritan Valley Community College recently.
"It's definitely not easy to be an international student in America," she said, "but regardless of the barriers, educating yourself is the key to breaking poverty, to breaking illiteracy, and to being the better version of you." Then, she said, "we can go back to our countries and be the change we want to see."
Bamford's seen a lot of change herself. At 12, she was the tallest in her class and was recruited by a modeling agency, which led to her competing in the first ever Fashion Week in Ghana. Modeling led to commercials, and they led to her recruitment by a band and a record deal.
"We were big enough, we got to perform for the president," she said of her group, D3, "which stands for Three Diamonds."
Bamford was 15 when she joined D3, and stayed with it several years, going on a video tour in Ghana and pulling in a nomination for best new act of the year at the Vodaphone Ghana Music Awards. Then Bamford put on the brakes.
"I decided my education should come first, even though the singing was fun and we were starting to make money. I figured I could go back into music later."
Raritan Valley College graduates 1.3K
She loves to travel, "and I am very curious," Bamford said, so she signed up for an exchange program to study in America, and ended up attending North Hunterdon High School her senior year. She credits her host family, Richard and Laura Shaw and their four daughters, for her drive to succeed. "They called me their fifth daughter," she said. "I had to hold my own."
At Raritan Valley Community College she carried a five-class load each of the four semesters she was there, served as president of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society this year, and held down three jobs to finance her stay in the U.S.
She worked as a part-time nanny, and worked on campus in the advising counselor's office and as a tutor. She also served as a Student Ambassador, and has been involved with such campus groups as Rotaract, Sister to Sister, the campus radio station and The Record student newspaper. And she graduated magna cum laude.
"Balancing three jobs and all that was crazy," she said recently. For motivation, she thinks of her three siblings and six half-siblings back in Ghana, and her mother. "They're the reason why I'm here and working hard," Bamford said.
"My mother never went to school and because of that she's had some struggles. I decided at a very young age that wouldn't happen to me. I can secure a better future for my siblings. With my success is their success."
When Bamford's mother was young, "educating women was not a big thing in my country," she said. "I'm very passionate about educating women; when you educate a woman, you educate a village."
To that end, she's working toward starting a news network in Ghana "that will broadcast unfiltered news," she said. "The news here about Ghana is always negative. You never hear the wonderful things Africans are doing in the world." And she plans to "use that access to information, through quality content, to eradicate illiteracy."
First things first, though. Bamford has to decide where she'll go to study liberal arts and communications. Possibilities include Rutgers and Montclair in New Jersey, Syracuse University, or possibly Cornell in the spring.
She says she's already had "two amazing years" at RVCC. "I have a family at RVCC. From President Michael McDonough, Dean Diane Lemcoe, Dean Richeleen Dashield to Donyea Collins, Greg DeSanctis, Ronnie Weyl, my professors Carl Lindskoog, Ronald Tyson, Bick Treut, Mark Bezanson, among others, I had a family that supported me and pushed me to be the best. For that, I will forever cherish my experience at RVCC."
Sallie Graziano may be reached at sgraziano@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SallieGraziano. Find NJ.com on Facebook.