Serena Musungu

Serena Musungu, Class of 2023 To me, being the first of my family to attend college in the U.S. used to mean the same thing as being alone. From attempting to graduate high-school as an English learner to figuring out a way to superior studies, I had to do it on my...

Jordan Meza

Jordan Meza, Class of 2021 First-generation means making it on your own. No help, no history, no understanding. Every next step is a first step, every class and hallmate and afterparty and workplace experience fresh, never-before seen. It means missing out on all the...

Cooper Scanlon

Cooper Scanlon, Class of 2023 Being first-generation and low-income first affected me by filling me with embarrassment. It was the shame I felt pulling up to school in a squeaky, dirty truck. It was the powerless feeling I felt when it was my turn to answer what my...

Ammar Bin Zulqarnain

Ammar Bin Zulqarnain, Class of 2022 Being a first-generation means a lot of things to me, especially when your parents have never been to college. My father served as an army officer in Pakistan and he was recruited right after his High School while my mom did an...

Abigail Forsythe

Abigail Forsythe, Class of 2023 My FGLI story is pretty standard. Both of my parents started college, but neither one finished with any sort of degree. They had me when they were very young, barely into their twenties, and have both worked very hard to give me the...