Decoding the Academy: Key Supports for First-generation Graduate Students

Drawing on data and practice, this webinar will contextualize the unique challenges and triumphs faced by first-generation graduate/professional students (FGGS) navigating graduate school.

Supporting First-Gen Survivors of Campus Sexual Violence

Join NASPA’s Culture of Respect Collective to learn trauma-informed best practices and enhance support and prevention initiatives for first-generation student survivors.

Using the Placement Process to Build Student-Centered Colleges

Presenters will share innovations in placement practices and strategies for using placement reform to spur larger, equity-forward institutional transformation.

How Jargon Influences Access & Success for First-gen Students

This session will help participants recognize how higher ed jargon creates barriers for first-gen students and families and provide strategies for recalibrating communication.

Understanding Black First-gen Men

As higher education seeks to increase the support for and graduation rates of Black college men, understanding the intersection of the first-gen identity provides a lens through which we can enrich our approach and support their academic pursuits.

Supporting Pathways for First-generation Students to Study Abroad

Presenters will share successful strategies for engaging with first-generation students and promising practices for increasing their participation in study abroad.

Building Fundraising Opportunities for First-gen Student Success

Presenters will share strategies for building a dynamic relationship with your University Advancement team and developing your own skills as a compelling fundraiser.

Proactively Supporting First-gen Mental Health: CSUDH Case Study

Presenters will share a case study examining how CSU Dominguez Hills implemented a proactive mental and emotional wellness curriculum to support first-gen students' mental health. Participants will participate in experiential exercises from the fields of positive psychology, mindfulness, and self-compassion.

Demystifying Institutional Data to Drive First-generation Student Success

Presenters from the Center for First-generation Student Success will identify key data sources and metrics that institutions should consider as they leverage data to inform decision-making and advance first-generation student success.

Developing and Implementing Programs for First-generation College Students

Discussing key themes identified in the book, "Developing and Implementing Promising Practices and Programs for First-Generation College Students," presenters will provide insight into key strategies to develop and implement programs and practices for first-generation students.

Narratives and Assets: Enhancing Knowledge and Skills in Working with First-gen

This live briefing will highlight current practices, needs, and recommendations for clinicians and professionals working with FGCS.

Building Supports for First-generation Indigenous Students: Focus on TCU Practices

This moderated session will provide a contemporary portrait of how tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) are building campus ecologies and initiatives to support first-generation indigenous students.

Making Missions Work: Mission-Driven First-generation Student Initiatives

In this live briefing, scholars will highlight recent research exploring how institutional mission statements can inform institutional practices dedicated to first-generation student success.

Improving Career and Engagement Outcomes of First-generation Graduates

This panel session will bring together a variety of perspectives to discuss the latest fact sheets from the Center and the Crimsonbridge Foundation on the career and engagement outcomes of first-generation college graduates.

Partnering with Academic Libraries and Archives to Collect First-generation Student Voices

This presentation shares case studies from two universities where libraries and archives have undertaken initiatives to document first-generation student narratives through the creation of oral histories.

Practical Strategies for Faculty and Staff to Cultivate First-gen Student Success

This session will highlight practical strategies to engage faculty and staff in enhancing the sense of belonging and overall success of first-generation students.

Understanding the First-generation Student Veteran Intersectional Identity

The presenters will cover the characteristics, challenges, and needs of first-generation student veterans (FGSV) and how to strategically and proactively support FGSV on campus.

Facing COVID-19 at School: First-gen students persisting through college during a Pandemic

The presenters will share mixed-methods data on the extent FGCS are persevering during the pandemic, identify new and existing barriers they are facing, and facilitate a conversation around meaningful support for FGCS during this time.

First-gen Students at Community & Technical Colleges: A Discussion of Key Findings

Join us January 14, 2021 from 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm ET for this live briefing!

Traversing New Territory as Low-income, First-generation Students of Color

This briefing examines how institutional values of independence ignore the familial commitments of low-income, first-generation students of color and consequently undermine their well-being and performance, especially during the transition to college.

First-gen at HBCU's

Engaging Family to Bolster First-gen Student Well-Being and Success

This briefing is focused on reframing the first-generation student experience from independence from family to interdependence with family in the college-going process and in supporting student well-being.

Institutional Cultures that Celebrate First-generation College Students

This live briefing will highlight the academic year and summer programs that are the foundation of our commitment to programs, resources, and strategies to create a campus climate that embraces first-gen college students.

First-generation Students’ Experiences During COVID-19

In this live briefing, scholars will share data from a multi-institutional survey of over 40,000 undergraduate, graduate, and professional first-generation students’ experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Navigating the First-gen Identity of Mid-Senior Level Professionals

This live briefing will navigate the first-gen identity of mid-senior level professionals surrounding supervision, mentorship, and career trajectory.

Mining First-gen Gaps: Reassessing Campus Infrastructure Amid a National Crisis

This live briefing will demonstrate how two institutions utilized resources and infrastructure assessments to leverage models of student success.

Fall 2020 First-gen Student Enrollment Considerations

In anticipation of continued remote instruction for fall 2020, there is much to consider. This expert panel will focus on the first-gen student experience.

Utilizing Social Platforms to Connect with First-gen Students

This webinar features practitioners from three diverse institutions sharing their experiences utilizing social media to connect with first-gen students.

Creating Support Resources for First-generation Graduate and Professional Students

This presentation will highlight how colleges and universities can improve their support and programming for first-generation, graduate and professional students.

A Balancing Act: Faculty and First-gen

Presenters will share testimonios and personal narratives about how their intersecting identities, personal backgrounds, and life experiences inform their pedagogy and research practices.

Building a Mentoring Program for First-generation Students

For 25 years, the Corporate Mentor Program has helped first-generation students from the University of South Florida transition into rewarding careers by pairing them with mentors in the Tampa Bay area. This Live Briefing will examine strategies for implementing an intentional mentoring effort at your institution.

A Collaborative Approach: Creating Cross-divisional Partnerships for First-gen Success

First-gen work is often siloed to particular offices on college and university campuses. This OnDemand offering explores how to implement a collaborative approach to first-gen student success at Wichita State University.

Partnering with Parents and Families of First-generation College Students

This Center Live Briefing will provide participants with strategies for identifying and engaging with parents and families of first-generation students and share approaches to implement at your institution.

Validating First-generation Student Experiences Through Transformative Leadership

In this Center Live Briefing, participants will learn how transformative academic advisors in higher education can help implement asset-based frameworks and design transformative experiences.

NASPA: Advancing #FirstgenForward for 100 Years

As NASPA commemorates its 100th anniversary, this recoding will explore NASPA's ongoing commitment to first-generation students.

Finding the Right Connections for First-generation Students with Impostor Syndrome

This Center Live Briefing will review the building blocks of impostor syndrome in first-generation college students as well as identify methods for addressing impostor syndrome and techniques to celebrate and internalize successes.

First-generation Journeys: Confronting, Challenging, & Crossing Academic Borderlands

This Center Live Briefing is well suited for staff and faculty interested in academic border-crossing experiences of first-generation students and the many intersections that inform numerous first-generation journeys.

Starting from the Bottom: Building First-gen Support Offerings with Little to No Resources

Now available On Demand! Dr. La'Tonya Rease Miles and Symone Morales from UCLA share lessons learned as they pioneered campus-wide first-generation student initiatives and worked intentionally with campus colleagues to ignite change.

8th Annual First-Generation Graduate Student Symposium

Join us for the 8th Annual First-Generation Graduate Student Symposium on February 7, 2025, hosted by Boston University, Duke University, and UNC Chapel Hill. Open to all students who identify as first-generation studying any discipline.

First-Generation College Celebration

Join us in celebrating the eighth annual First-Generation College Celebration!

2024 First-generation Student Success Conference

Join us from June 23 through June 25 as we reconvene the student success community in Anaheim, CA!

2024 NASPA Annual Conference

Don't miss your chance to move #FirstgenForward with us in Seattle, WA!

First-generation Graduate Student Symposium

This national symposium is open to any student who identifies as a current first-generation graduate or professional student and is studying any discipline.

Class Action First Gen Summit

The First Gen Summit serves as a site for the meeting of the minds. First-gen students and their allies come together to identify problems, discuss grassroots solutions, and share what’s working on their campuses.

Grantmakers for Education Annual Conference

"In Pursuit of Justice: Creating Contexts for Young People and Adult Learners to Thrive" takes place in Atlanta, GA, October 10-12,2023. This conference focuses on what learners need today and what major shifts are need for tomorrow.

2023 First-generation Student Success Conference

Join us from June 25 through June 27 as we reconvene the student success community in Kansas City, MO!

2022 Power and Place Symposium

Virtual Pre-Conference on Indigenous worldviews regarding orientation, transition, and retention in higher education.

First-generation Graduate and Professional Student Symposium

Join the Boston University Newbury Center, Duke University First-Generation Graduate Student Network, and The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Carolina Grad Student F1RSTS for the 6th annual symposium for graduate and professional students on February 24, 2023.

2023 NASPA Annual Conference

Don't miss your chance to move #FirstgenForward with us in Boston! Late registration is still open!

2022 First-generation Student Success Conference

Join us from June 26 through June 29 as we reconvene the student success community in Baltimore, MD for the first time since 2019!

2022 NASPA Annual Conference

The NASPA Annual Conference is the premier student affairs professional development event. We hope to see you in Baltimore as we reunite in-person in March 2022!

NCCCS First-generation Symposium

The Center is a cooperative sponsor of the North Carolina Community College System First-generation Symposium.

2021 Virtual First-generation Student Success Conference

Join us virtually June 28-30, with pre-conference workshops taking place on June 26 and 27.

2021 NASPA Virtual Conference

The conference will run March 17 - 26.

Virtual First-Generation Symposium: Two-Year Edition

The inaugural First-Generation Symposium will be held virtually on March 11, 2021 9:00AM - 4:00PM EST via the Cisco WebEx platform.

2020 Virtual First-generation Student Success Conference

The conference will take place via remote platform from June 29 - July 1, 2020, with pre-conference workshops held on June 28, 2020.

#SAChat and Know Your NASPA

On Thursday, April 30, 2020 at 1:00 pm ET the Center will host this #SAChat - Unpacking the #Firstgen Student Experience Amid a National Crisis, immediately followed by a live Know Your NASPA.

2020 NASPA Annual Conference

The 2020 NASPA Annual Conference is canceled.

First-Generation Southwest Symposium

The Center is proud to serve as a cooperating sponsor for the 2019 First-Generation Southwest Symposium on the beautiful campus of Northern Arizona University. We hope that you can join us!

2019 First-generation Student Success Conference

This conference will convene scholars and practitioners to discuss effective approaches to support and improve the outcomes of first-generation college students.

2019 NASPA Annual Conference

Now is the time to begin your journey to the 2019 NASPA Annual Conference.

Low Income and First-Gen Aren’t the Same Thing!

Education advocates, wonks and journalists tend to conflate the terms “low-income” and “first-generation,” using them interchangeably. Senior Director, Dr. Sarah E. Whitley will join a panel to discuss the many differences.

2018 First-Generation College Celebration

Join the Council for Opportunity in Education, Center for First-generation Student Success and college and universities across the country on November 8, 2018 for the second annual First-Generation College Celebration!

2018 Institute on First-Generation College Students

The 2018 Institute on First-Generation College Students was hosted by the National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition with support from the Center for First-generation Student Success.

2018 Symposium on Collegiate Financial Well-Being

Participants will learn effective strategies for helping students improve their fiscal health during college and remain financially stable after graduation.

2018 NASPA Closing the Achievement Gap

Co-located with the Symposium on Collegiate Financial Well-being, this conference is a one-stop shop for student success!

NASPA 100th Annual Conference

NASPA held its Annual Conference celebrating our 100th anniversary in Philadelphia, PA in March 2018.

2018 Convening on First-generation Student Success

On January 30, 2018, the Center convened over 100 higher education leaders to discuss the current issues institutions face in serving first-generation students.