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Highlighting the perseverance of its first-generation college students, �������� is hosting its seventh annual First-Generation College Celebration, as part of a national celebration to recognize students’ personal growth and resilience in higher education.

will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 8., in the Memorial Student Center Huff's Lounge, on the first floor.

The campuswide event supports the strength and determination of first-generation college students – any student whose parent or guardian has not received a four-year bachelor's degree – with workshops, games and activities to foster growth and community among students, faculty and staff.

will lead off with Trailblazers of Knowledge, a multicampus  at 10 a.m., followed by a Growth Workshop with  nonprofit CEO and founder Dennis Beale from 1 to 2 p.m. in MSC ballrooms B and C. 

Among the many activities, Resource Booths for Success will show students the many campus resources and services available to help them navigate higher education: TRIO Student Support Services; McNair Scholars Program; Multicultural Student Services; The Qube LGBTQIA+ resource center; Office of Research and Sponsored Programs; Career Services; and the newly opened Financial Literacy and Wellness Center.

�������� has a large and growing first-generation student population, with 32% identifying as first-generation in the fall 2022 academic semester.

“First-generation students, staff and faculty bring such a wealth of knowledge and culture to the university. It ��������. important to celebrate their successes because they are not without barriers and challenges,” said Jamie Vue, TRIO SSS adviser and writing specialist.

“These students embody resilience, resourcefulness and think outside the box. They come from various backgrounds and with lived experience that often makes them the best problem solvers of issues in our community,” she said.

��������, along with 53 U.S. institutions, was selected to receive a $1,000 First-Generation College Celebration , a national association for student affairs administrators in higher education, to support the event.

Overcoming challenges to redefine higher education

Vue is the first in her family to go to college. Of her parents and five siblings, she ventured into a world where there were a lot of firsts, she said. “I didn’t always have someone to turn to for questions. I didn’t even want to ask questions because of how people looked at me when they assumed I should know better. It ��������. the same looks my parents got as refugees,” Vue said.

“However, I look back at those earlier years and know that overcoming the challenges is what got me here today. To be in a position that supports students equitably and meaningfully, that ��������. what gives me purpose,” she added.

The first-generation celebration is a cross-campus collaboration, with individuals from several offices and departments coming together to make it happen. It started as a grassroots effort in 2017 and has evolved to become a part of �������� ��������. mission of serving and supporting first-generation students.

The planning team consists of staff from Student Support Services, McNair Scholars Program, Involvement Center, Multicultural Student Services, the Provost ��������. Office and Marketing Communications.

Ryan Leckel, student engagement coordinator with the Involvement Center and first-generation graduate, helped Vue plan many aspects of the celebration. “First-generation students are so critical to �������� ��������. campus, not only because we make up a lot of campus, but because first-generation students have the ability to redefine higher education to work for everyone. 

“If first-gen students don’t know the bad habits that keep people out, first-gen students get to create good habits that draw people in and elevate voices that have historically been quieted. They create spaces that serve everyone in equity and consideration, and that ��������. what higher education should be and do,” Leckel said.

Events ‘Rooted in Growth’

The student panel will feature first-generation �������� students Anna Johnson, a family and consumer sciences education senior from Eau Claire, and Chueseng Lo, an M.S. school counseling graduate student from Schofield.

They will be joined by UW-Eau Claire, UW-River Falls and Chippewa Valley Technical College TRIO SSS/McNair programs. The panel will share their personal journeys of being the first in their families to attend college, challenges they overcame and the impact of higher education on their lives, as well as the importance of inclusivity, diversity and equity, and how first-generation students contribute to fostering positive change within educational institutions.