First-Gen, Get Out of Here!

To paraphrase a quote used in our Education Abroad Office, “First-Gen, Get Out of Here!”

Murray State University first-generation initiatives kicked off the year with 18 first-year, first-gen students taking a course tied to a study abroad experience. The students, along with four faculty and staff members, traveled to London over spring break. The experience was largely funded for the students through a one-time grant, and enabled students the ability to earn credit in either Media Literacy and Society, or The Theatrical Experience, both of which satisfy a university studies requirement. Storytelling was a major component of both courses, and the theme I share.

Students were able to get to know one another before the trip, and the abroad experience helped those newfound friendships develop even more. Upon our return to campus, both classes spent the rest of the semester honing their storytelling skills. The media literacy students gave presentations about the experience, and how their lives were impacted, and the theatre class shared their stories through any means other than a paper. There were scrapbooks, presentations, and videos. The students were writing, and telling, their own stories!

Murray State University opened our First-Gen Thrive Lounge last fall, and expanded it this fall with a new study/meeting space. It is within this space that the story continues. In an effort to connect our first-gen students with first-gen faculty and staff, this fall we gathered those first-gen faculty, staff and administrators for a group photo. We created a directory, with photos, which is housed on our first-gen website (murraystate.edu/firstgeneration), and a printed copy is kept in the lounge. The directory is a great way for students to know which faculty and staff understand their story.

With the opening of the lounge expansion, we unveiled “The Faces of First-Gen,” a collection of photographs taken by the students who went to London in the spring. To quote one of the students who is part of this cohort, Grey, “…without this experience, I’d have never had the opportunity to meet and become friends with everyone in our group. It’s been lovely!” We plan to continue to add to the collection in the future, and continue telling the stories of the first-gen students at Murray State University.

…without this experience, I’d have never had the opportunity to meet and become friends with everyone in our group. It’s been lovely!

The 18 first-year students who participated in the first-gen study abroad experience are all enrolled at Murray State University for their second year! And we’re still telling stories! We’ve had a reunion already this fall, and plans to get together before the semester ends to celebrate finals, and the holidays. This cohort of students is truly thriving! Since our abroad experience, the students have grown in confidence, and are engaged on campus. Our students are serving in leadership positions through the Student Government Association, in the residential colleges, and in sororities and fraternities. Our students are working jobs, making good grades, and joining clubs. We even have two students who earned scholarships to go back to England to study this fall!

This year’s progress culminated with our annual First-Generation Celebration. We awarded scholarships to four first-gen students, recognized our donors, and gave students the opportunity to mingle with one another, and meet first-gen faculty and staff. We shared our stories.

We’re just getting started. We hope to continue the study abroad experience with the Education Abroad Office, and are working on plans for spring break 2026. The First-Gen Thrive Lounge, the participation and encouragement of our first-gen faculty and staff, new programming dedicated to first-gen student success, and most importantly, our first-generation students, are all part of the story here at Murray State University…the story that just keeps getting better and better!