2022: The Year in #AdvocateFirstgen

As 2022 comes to a close, it’s a good time to reflect on the advocacy efforts that benefited first-generation college students over the past year. These actions have taken a variety of forms and range from national to institution-specific activities. Though advocacy work takes time, this year's coordinated efforts yielded significant results from important, longstanding campaigns designed to directly benefit the deeply intersectional first-generation student population.

The Center continues to join national advocacy partnerships–with a greater focus on identifying broader legislative efforts that intersect with first-generation student identities. 

As we look ahead to 2023, we will continue to #AdvocateFirstgen with a broader focus on issues that affect the intersectional identities of first-generation college students.

In coordination with our partners in the Today’s Students Coalition and their parent organization, Higher Learning Advocates, the Center joined letters of support to Congress to:

The Center continues to join national advocacy partnerships–with a greater focus on identifying broader legislative efforts that intersect with first-generation student identities.

On February 3, 2022, the Center joined nearly 1,200 organizations in asking legislators to protect the long-term viability of the federal Pell Grant program, which is critical to access and completion for first-generation students. The Double Pell Campaign to raise the amount of Pell Grants to $13,000 remains active. Despite falling short of this goal, advocacy efforts in 2022 resulted in the largest year-to-year increase in the amount of Pell Grants in ten years–with Congress approving a maximum award of $6,895 (a 6.2% increase).

The Center’s advocacy campaign, #AdvocateFirstgen, addressed a number of critical issues in 2022. Initial posts focused on incorporating first-generation efforts into the budgeting process (January 2022) and success in securing additional emergency aid funding for college students (February 2022). State-level calls to action on legislative efforts to curb legacy admissions (March 2022) and promoting opportunities to support community colleges as part of the Association of Community College Trustees’ #CCMonth (April 2022), and advocacy efforts to increase funding to address the mental health needs of students enrolled in higher education (May 2022) were important topics in the spring.

Additional posts reflected on the growth of the Center’s advocacy work as it celebrated its fifth anniversary (June 2022); issued a call  to action to ensure that first-generation students are aware of civic engagement opportunities (August 2022); outlined key points of the Biden administration’s plan for student loan forgiveness (September 2022); and related examples of how data is a powerful tool in advocacy efforts (October 2022). A guest blog featuring Center Advocacy Group member Sonja Ardoin, Ph.D., associate professor of higher education and student affairs, Clemson University, outlined steps to becoming a first-generation student advocate while navigating a new campus environment (November 2022). 

The Center’s advocacy efforts covered a wide range of topics.  As we look ahead to 2023, we will continue to #AdvocateFirstgen with a broader focus on issues that affect the intersectional identities of first-generation college students.