Montevallo’s First-Generation College Celebration

On Friday, November 8th, the University of Montevallo’s First-Generation College Celebration was held in the Anna Irvin Dining Hall. The Falcon Success Center, TRIO SSS and TRIO McNair Programs participated in the event, along with University President, Dr. John Stewart and Vice President of Academic Affairs & Provost, Dr. Mary Beth Armstrong.

The celebration started with a welcome and opening remarks from Dr. Stewart and Dr. Armstrong, both of whom identify as first-generation college students.

During the program, Dr. Sherry Ford opened the floor to attendees to discuss their personal experiences of identifying as a first-generation college students and the key factors that contributed to their success. Dr. Ray Ozley, Bria Hines, Gabrielle Pringle, Nicole Mullis and Jacob Guyton served as panelists at the event.

Pastor Mike Jones was the keynote speaker and he encouraged every person in the room, no matter the age or ethnic background, to keep following their dreams and to build brighter futures.

After lunch, there were two breakout sessions held. Current McNair Scholar and TRIO SSS participant, Jameka Greer and alumna, Gabrielle Pringle held a session about breaking barriers among first-generation college students. In this session, Greer and Pringle hosted a first-generation trivia activity to introduce Greer’s research about African American Studies and the difficulties of being a minority first-generation student. Additionally, Communication Studies professor, Dr. Tiffany Wang and Sociology professor, Dr. Stephen Parker held a session during which, Dr. Wang discussed her research on first-generation college students and Dr. Parker discussed his first-hand experiences as a first-generation college student. The conversation opened to the audience, where those in attendance discussed their experiences—from being a culturally different minority to being a first-generation student and how backgrounds helped shaped experiences when it comes to attending college for the first time.

At the end of the event, an awards ceremony was held, where Dr. Stephen Parker received the First-Generation Faculty Award; Kathy Bailey received the First-Generation Staff Award; Marcos Lopez received the First-Generation Student Award; Gabrielle Pringle received the First-Generation Alumni Award; and keynote speaker, Pastor Mike Jones received the First-Generation Community Award.

The celebration had nearly 60 attendees from UM students, faculty, and staff celebrating the accomplishments of University of Montevallo’s first-generation college students.

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