Alumni Spotlight Erika Baldino, BA'10

There’s being active and then there’s what Erika Baldino is doing with her life.

Erika was honored last summer as one of NJBIZ Forty Under 40 for her efforts in the world of real estate, but her impact can be seen across an incredible array of passions, not the least of which is Fairleigh Dickinson University.

She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Paterson Rotary Club as well as the Women’s Council of Realtors of North Central NJ. She was asked this year – and gratefully agreed – to serve as an advisor for FDU’s School of Nursing and Allied Health.

She supports a wide array of charities – United Negro College Fund, March of Dimes, Children’s Miracle Network, Metavivor, Operation Beethoven, Project Purple and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society – and loves mentoring young entrepreneurs, especially those who seek financial freedom through home ownership and real estate investment.

Learn more about Erika…

Name: Erika Baldino

FDU Graduation Year(s) & Major: 2010 – B.S. in Biology from the Florham campus

Campus(es) where you studied: Florham & Wroxton

Family: Mother Karen, brother David & Kyra, sister Victoria & Chris and pup Thor

Current occupation: EVP of Business Development at Kensington Vanguard and Legal 1031 Exchange

Hobbies & Interests: Volunteerism, golf, working grapes in my vineyard, wine collecting, cigars, walking, Broadway shows, investing in real estate.

What is your favorite memory of FDU? The science department at FDU Florham – my family for four years at undergrad – holds some of the best memories. I will admit to a small prank I played in one of the classes – we were doing a urine analysis and I switched the sample to Apple Juice, labeled it “AJ” and when we ran the test, the teacher became concerned one of us had really high sugar and should see a doctor. The teacher figured out specimen “AJ” was, in fact, Apple Juice and had a good laugh!

What was your favorite place on campus and why? After hours at Club Lib – also known as the FDU Library where we’d order Dominos Pizza at 2 a.m.

Who was the most influential person in your FDU Experience: I loved learning from Dr. Garrity at FDU’s Wroxton campus – he really had a way of teaching that pushed you to think in an unbiased manor and really challenged your belief systems. It was really important to learn through a global lens and I’m grateful for the Wroxton experience.

What keeps you connected to FDU? I was honored to be asked by Dean Annie Rohan on the Teaneck campus to sit on her Board for the Becton School of Nursing and Allied Health. It has helped me stay connected to the university and allowed me to give some insight on ways we can shape our next batch of future leaders coming out of FDU. I’ll be attending Wroxton (as a Chaperone this time!) for a specially designed two-week program for those students and I am excited for the opportunity to mentor them!

One piece of advice for current FDU students? It doesn’t pay to be smart – it pays to make smart decisions. You can be the smartest person in the classroom at FDU but if you aren’t networking with people, doing right by your friends and teachers, and working toward goals, you’ll never get to the next level.

Where you can find me on social media: Instagram – @erikabaldino