Luther College Expands Support for First-Generation Students, Beyond Traditional Programs

When people would ask Lupe Duran Sanchez what she wanted to be when she grew up, she would tell them she wanted to be a chef. While the Iowa State University graduate and first-generation college student does love to cook, she said that answer just made the most sense, as it was what her mother taught her. Sanchez grew up in a traditional Mexican household, she said, moving to Iowa after living in Mexico for the first nine years of her life. Her mother taught her how to cook, take care of children and be a hard worker, and she was raised with the idea that they came to the U.S. for better opportunities, which meant work. "Growing up, I never really wanted to be anything big," Sanchez said. "I never really looked ahead in time. I never really was like, 'I want to be a teacher,' or, 'I want to go to school,' or, 'I wonder what it takes to be this person.'" Now she has graduated from ISU with a degree in psychology and hopes to further her education and career goals in clinical psychology. She and many other first-generation students across Iowa face barriers to higher education, from financial to physical to emotional, and are often working with less knowledge or support from their families, who don't have their own higher education experiences to pass on. Universities are working to reach these students to provide resources and a support system, but demand can outweigh their supply of funds and staff. Fostering support systems for first-gen studentsJennifer Hanifl, director of the Trio Support Student Services program at Luther College, said students are more able to persist through college when they have "intentional support," where a mentor or adviser reaches out to them as someone they can go to in times of need. "Experiencing a sense of belonging is really important, and also being a part of something greater, and that leads to student satisfaction, and student satisfaction, in turn, leads to improved academic standing and outcomes," Hanifl said. "And then that leads to retention, which leads to completion." Hanifl said that traditionally, all first-generation student services have gone through Trio Student Support Services. The federally funded program is limited on how many students can be involved, however, from first-generation to students with disabilities and lower income. The university is working to expand programs for first-generation students not in Trio through a membership in the FirstGen Forward Network, an organization that helps colleges and universities network and find solutions to provide more aid to first-generation students. One way the university is trying to show students how far their first-generation community spans across campus is encouraging faculty and staff to show their first-generation status. Luther Assistant Dean of Student Success and Director of Disability Services Ann Smith said once she and Hanifl learn which faculty and staff members are first-generation, they will make door displays to hang up, and they are nudging them to speak with students about their identity and experiences. It's also important that students have more than one community to turn to on campus, Hanifl said, whether it be through athletics, hobby groups or other organizations, in order to feel supported on all sides. "I feel like, since we are all first-gen, we can all relate to each other in what we're going through. It feels good to talk to somebody who knows what I'm feeling, and they listen and we validate each other.– Jessie Renteria, Loras College sophomore Jacob Klingsten, a Luther College senior studying music education, said he found a community in the college's Nordic Choir, and the resources offered to him through Trio have helped him afford things from tuition to trips with the choir. His parents are unable to help him financially with school, but through scholarships and grants he learned about and received through Trio, his tuition was covered enough for him to go with the choir on a two-week trip to Norway in the spring. "Those are things that you just can't really put a price on," Klingsten said. "For someone who you know can barely afford, you know, a fraction of the tuition, it's really tricky, so I was really fortunate that Luther and Trio were able to kind of swoop in." Programs aid with culture shock, parents' resistanceSanchez said her parents resisted the idea of her attending college, saying there wasn't the money for it and not to get her hopes up. It was high school teachers and counselors who put the idea of getting a college education in Sanchez's mind, though she wasn't quite sure what she wanted to do yet. Her parents opened up a little more to the idea when they attended a Latino family visit day at ISU, as everything was in Spanish and they were able to learn more about the university. Despite this, they were still unhappy with the idea of her attending the university instead of a local community college, as she said they felt she was going against them. Now her relationship with them is better, and they're excited she got her degree and wants to continue her education, but she said that for the first couple of years in school, she did not have their support. She also didn't have any close friends attending ISU with her, and she often felt left out culturally. "Coming here was shocking, from my dorm to my classes to kind of everything…" Sanchez said. "I felt sad and lonely, but I also knew that I was outgoing and talkative, so I knew I was going to find my way." Sanchez said her main struggle in college was financial, having not received scholarships and working different jobs to get by. At one point, her friends at home created a fundraising campaign to help pay for her classes, and she was able to stay enrolled. That was when she realized that she needed to reach out for help that she wasn't getting through a traditional counselor, who suggested dropping out, and found people who both did and didn't understand her experiences. She found friends and a support network through the "Womxn of Color Network" and "Latinx Student Initiatives," and the people she met were among the reasons she kept going. First-generation students at Loras College in Dubuque have found connection and community through the Center for Inclusion & Advocacy, which houses the First Generation Scholars Program as well as multicultural groups and other organizations. Alondra Jimenez, a sophomore studying social work and psychology at Loras, said it was the campus community and the Center for Inclusion & Advocacy that she fell in love with when touring the college. It had always been her dream, as well as her parents' dream, for her to get a higher education, as her father completed school through eighth grade in Mexico and her mother took some community college courses but didn't graduate. Her biggest worries going into college were about academics and fitting in, but found a system of trust and support through the center. One of her best friends, sophomore Jessie Renteria, said they met through the First Gen Scholars program and the college's League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) chapter. She said it's important for first-gen students to know others who have had similar experiences, so they can talk about their worries and triumphs with someone who understands them. "I feel like, since we are all first-gen, we can all relate to each other in what we're going through," Renteria said. "It feels good to talk to somebody who knows what I'm feeling, and they listen and we validate each other." Samantha Hernandez, also a sophomore studying psychology and social work, said she didn't think she was going to attend college at all until her cousin told her all about Loras and its programs. Her parents wanted her to continue her education, but with them and her older siblings not having gone to college, she didn't think it was necessary. Dubuque is the farthest Hernandez has ever been from her home in Chicago, she said, and she wasn't sure how she'd handle being away from her family. She also grew up in an area where there was a majority Hispanic community, and coming to Loras was a culture shock. "Being surrounded by my culture my whole life, and then coming to Dubuque was a very big change for me, and I had to learn to get adjusted to living here in Dubuque," Hernandez said. She said both the First Gen Scholars program and LULAC helped her feel more at home, and she's met her best friends through the programs. Center for Inclusion & Advocacy Director Sergio Perez said that during his time at Loras, having graduated in 2013, there wasn't any knowledge or awareness of first-generation students as a group, but now the university makes sure to consider first-gen needs and perspectives when it comes to different initiatives. He always tells students that, at the minimum, what they're getting from Loras now is just as good as what he had, and if he's doing his job right, they're actually getting a lot more. "A lot of our students are claiming that identity, that label as a point of pride," Perez said. "Like, yeah, we are the first ones to start, hopefully, several generations of tradition of academic achievement in the higher ed setting." From Glendale, Ariz., Renteria said she learned about the Dubuque college through a college prep program. Representatives spoke to Renteria's cohort in her freshman year of high school, and she said the college stuck in the back of her mind. Even after she applied and got accepted, she didn't think she'd actually go, seeing a future instead at the community college close to home. However, Loras ticked all her boxes and offered her the most scholarship funding, so she enrolled.I don't see being first gen as a deficit at all. I see it as an incredibly liberating identity, an empowering one.– Sergio Perez, Loras College Center for Inclusion & Advocacy Director Like many students, finances and family were her largest worries about college. Renteria said her family is very close-knit, and the idea of being so far away had her see-sawing on the choice to go before committing. Even after starting at Loras, Renteria said she secluded herself because she didn't know anyone and felt very alone. If there's one thing Renteria wished she knew then that she knows now, it's that the First Gen Scholars program will always be there to answer questions and offer support, and that she shouldn't be nervous about reaching out. It took a few weeks, but Renteria said she started to put herself out there more and Loras started to feel like the right choice. She's met good friends, and said those she's met through the First Gen Scholars program are a "special group." "I look at everybody, and I'm just proud," Renteria said. "I'm proud to see that they're taking that jump, and they're, they're doing it because it's, it's a lot easier said than done to be a first-gen college student." Making a better future for incoming first-gen studentsFor the university officials working to help first-generation students, their needs are simple—more resources and more ways to reach those in need. Hanifl said only about 30% of first-generation students receive support through Trio SSS, leaving the majority of that population without dedicated resources and services relating to their status. However, the waiting list to join Trio is not long. Students, especially those who don't have family telling them what to expect from college, don't know what they don't know, so some might not even be aware that Luther offers support for them. Backing from the university and being admitted to the FirstGen Forward Network will give staff more opportunities to expand programming beyond Trio and generate ideas on how to better reach students, Hanifl said. "Only 29% of our students who are first-gen are part of the Trio services, and so that would mean that, technically, 70% of the other students would be on a waiting list, but they maybe don't even know of the services that Trio could possibly provide if they were able to be part of it," Smith said. The students agreed, saying it would be good to spread the word more as well as highlight the work and accomplishments of first-gen students. Halle Olson, a senior at Luther, said her lack of knowledge about any first-gen student services on campus led to her not seeking out resources that could have helped her feel more comfortable and supported in her academics. Sanchez was also in the dark about some of the systems put in place on campus to help her, and said that when she'd tell people after the fact that she struggled with something, she'd feel invalidated when they'd just tell her there are resources available. More meetings, more mentorship, more tutoring and help with things like the FAFSA and scholarship applications, it would all be appreciated, multiple students mentioned. Despite the strides made in creating awareness and supports for first-generation students since Perez graduated from Loras, he said more people need to know what being first-generation is, and more people need to own it. "I don't see being first gen as a deficit at all," Perez said. "I see it as an incredibly liberating identity, an empowering one." Now with her degree and plans to explore graduate school, Sanchez said she uses her identity and story as a first-generation student to help encourage the kids she works with to think about higher education as something they can achieve, instead of something they'll never experience. No matter whether you find someone with a story similar to yours or with completely different experiences, Sanchez said there will always be someone there to listen, provide support and advocate for you when needed. Even when faced with closed doors and uncertainty, she said there's always a way forward. "I am very proud of everyone, every first-generation kid who has decided to go to higher education, because on top of making that decision, you're making it loud and clear that we're here and that we are we represent a huge chunk of students, and we are worthy of being here as much as everyone who is here," Sanchez said. Elevate your inbox with the DecorahNews.com newsletter! Receive free thought-provoking articles, actionable advice and inspiring stories every week.