Resource Guides
Resource Guides
Engaging with Statewide Advocacy for First-generation College Students
Dallas Doane Ph.D., University of Kansas / FirstGen Forward / June 17, 2024
In the United States, 20% of first-generation college students will graduate within 6 years with a baccalaureate degree, despite making up 54% of college attendees overall (RTI International, 2019, 2023). Reasons for this disparity include the variety of challenges institutions create for first-generation college students, such as higher education’s rising cost; increased financial stress; complicated, hidden academy norms; and lower extracurricular-involvement levels (Canning et al., 2020; Laiduc et al., 2021; Means & Pyne, 2017; Pratt et al., 2019; Wilcox et al., 2021). Although institutions create many challenges, first-generation students often have higher levels of resilience and grit—and are therefore better able to handle challenging situations (Bennett et al., 2021; Swanbrow Becker et al., 2017). Numerous ways exist to dismantle these barriers and become a student-ready institution, thus removing the need for first-generation college students to continue to struggle. One avenue to increase support for first-generation college students is through intentional advocacy efforts.
Serving Undergraduate First-generation Latinx/a/o Communities in Higher Education
Antonio Duran Ph.D., Arizona State University / FirstGen Forward / December 11, 2023
As the overall Latinx/a/o population in the United States rises, Latinx/a/o communities continue to be one of the fastest-growing college student demographic groups (Flink, 2018; Mora, 2022). Scholars have amplified the diversity of communities that exist within Latinx/a/o college student populations (Garcia & Cuellar, 2023; Núñez, 2014) and have echoed other research that shows Latinx/a/o communities are not a monolith (Zong, 2022).
One subgroup that has received the attention of educators, policymakers, and community partners is first-generation Latinx/a/o students. The need to spotlight the realities that first-generation Latinx/a/o students face at institutions of higher education is urgent. Recently, Excelencia in Education (2019) reported that Latinos were more likely than other racial and ethnic groups to be first-generation college students. Researchers have consistently demonstrated that these communities encounter unique challenges and opportunities in educational settings given their racial and ethnic positioning and educational generational status.
This resource guide unpacks several themes found in the literature on first-generation Latinx/a/o students, including access to and aspirations for higher education; academic experiences, preparation, and outcomes; persistence and resistance; and navigating college and community.
Engaging Support for Black First-generation Students
Charmaine Troy Ph.D., Georgia Tech / FirstGen Forward / April 21, 2023
First-generation students are often tasked with navigating college admissions, financial aid, and campus life without the same support structures as their continuing-generation peers. During the 2015–16 academic year, 23.9% of the undergraduate population identified as first-generation (Postsecondary National Policy Institute, 2022). Many of these students feel ill prepared for classes and campus life because they do not have family members to rely on for advice.
Creating an Inclusive Experience for Rural First-gen Students
Matt Newlin Ed.D., Matt Newlin Consulting / FirstGen Forward / November 04, 2022
Defining rural student is difficult given the varied and, at times, contradictory federal and state classifications for rurality. For example, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) uses an urban-centric locale categorization for schools that includes town and rural, which are defined in relation to urbanized areas (NCES, 2006). Both town and rural have three subcategories – fringe, distant, and remote – which vary depending on the distance from an urban cluster or urbanized area. To be as inclusive as possible, this resource guide will use rural to describe students who come from either the Town or Rural NCES locales.
