FirstGenFM
For educators looking to connect, learn, and share knowledge about serving first-generation college and college-bound students.
FirstGenFM
Creating a Community for First-Gen Student Success: Insights from FirstGen Forward Leaders
What drives a first-generation college student to not only enroll but thrive? Join us on First Gen FM as we shine a spotlight on the inspiring stories of Dr. Martina Martin, Catherine Johnson, Ashlee Kocina Young, Wendy Beesley, and Dr. Jennifer Sutton from First Gen Forward. Guests share their personal journey of either discovering her own first-gen identity, and the beliefs that fuel their unwavering commitment to supporting this student population.
Dive into the world of FirstGen Forward (formerly the Center for First-Generation Student Success), a nonprofit entity now leading the charge in providing critical resources and strategic programs to institutions. We explore how measuring belonging and preparing students holistically for life after graduation can dramatically improve retention and completion rates. Our conversation unveils the transformative power of data-informed decision-making, emphasizing how it can dismantle barriers and reveal hidden supports crucial for first-gen success. Discover the importance of simplifying processes like FAFSA and using asset-based language to create a more inclusive educational environment.
You'll find yourself in a vibrant community of the First Gen Forward Network as you listen, and learn about the community where over 400 institutions collaborate to empower first-gen students. Hear firsthand accounts of the invaluable learning and connections formed within this diverse network, and learn how you can get involved, even if your institution isn't yet on board.
Opportunities abound at upcoming NASPA conferences in March and the Student Success in Higher Education conferene in June.
As your host, I'm eager to hear from you. Connect with me at Jen@firstgenfm.com to share your stories and insights, and let's continue this journey together, fostering a platform for dialogue and innovation in first-generation student support.
FirstGen Forward
Established in 2017 as the Center for First-generation Student Success, an initiative of NASPA and The Suder Foundation, the organization has grown and become a collaborative effort across the entire higher education system, working directly with hundreds of institutions that serve millions of first-generation students. In August, 2024, the organization became an independent non-profit under the name FirstGen Forward.
Website: https://firstgen.naspa.org
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/firstgenforward/
Email: network@firstgenforward.org
Podcast guests
Please help others find this podcast by rating and reviewing wherever you listen!
You can find me at https://www.firstgenfm.com/ and on LinkedIn. My email is jen@firstgenfm.com.
Welcome and welcome back to the First Gen FM podcast, where we high school and college educators strengthen, celebrate and support first-generation college and college-bound students. I'm Jennifer Schoen, your host. Please call me Jen. I'd love it if you could leave a review and a rating for this podcast to help other educators find us. Thank you so much for taking the time to do that. Now let's dive into this week's episode.
Speaker 1:Welcome back, or welcome to First Gen FM. If this is your first time listening, I have a fantastic group of women here with me today from First Gen Forward and they're going to talk about. We're going to talk about trends, we're going to talk about the things that they do and how they got involved in FirstGen Forward and why they're interested in serving FirstGen students, and about how you can learn from them and get more information. So I'm Jen, I'm your host today, and let's get started and meet some of these amazing women who are here to talk with us about First Gen Forward. And I'm going to throw it to you first, martina, to introduce yourself and tell us how did you get involved working with first generation students.
Speaker 2:Awesome. Well, thanks, jen, for having us here. Excited to be here Again. I am Martina Martin and I'm with First Gen Forward. I serve as the assistant vice president for network success and have the pleasure of working with the ladies that you see here. This is our I guess our first gen squad here at First Gen Forward.
Speaker 2:How did I find myself here? Well, to be honest, I didn't know I was first gen until I was about 28 years old. I've already had a bachelor's, a master's, working on a second master's. Before I realized in a training session that talked about special populations of students, student athletes, veterans and then first gen. That was my light bulb moment.
Speaker 2:Never pieced it together, only saw myself as a low income student who was a part of a trio type program, but I thought it was because I was low income. My first part of my career was working in athletics, academic advising, and then I saw a job posting at an institution that was with first gen students and I thought, and I thought, that's me. I work with special populations, why not apply? And so, since 2012, I've been working specifically with first generation student. Correct me, we started on the same day that we started working with first and fourth, so right there at the two door mark, I am a proud first generation student. As I said, didn't realize it, but once I discovered that, then that's what kind of drew me in, to being able to help, as I jokingly say, sometimes, the other Martinez across the campuses and across the country as well. So a little bit about me. We have a lot of others. So I believe, catherine, I'm going to turn it over to you, thank you.
Speaker 3:Thank you so much, martina, and thank you so much, jen for having us on this podcast so exciting. So I'm Catherine Johnson. I am the data expert guide at First Gen Forward and I have been here for three and a half months, I believe. So I'm still a little bit of a newbie in learning the ropes, but I'm trying to dive in headfirst and absorb as much as I can and do as much work as I can in this field. I have a little bit of a different story.
Speaker 3:I come from a family with a very long history of college-going tradition. But I grew up in a small town in the foothills of the northern Appalachians where only about 10% to 15% of adults have post-secondary degrees. But I grew up with parents who really encouraged us to examine our educational privilege, especially within our own community, and they were both also very heavily involved in sectors of service. My mom was a professor and then later admin administrator at our local community college and my dad worked in public interest law. So I really was fortunate to grow up with an understanding of what the power of a degree can do, and not just for individuals but also for families and for generations. But I really thought through high school and college that I was going to go completely different direction. I've had my eyes on Foreign Service, un, international Aid and when I was looking for positions out of college the economy said no, that's not your path, um.
Speaker 3:And a job opened up in higher ed as an academic advisor at university of Maryland, specifically for military and veteran students. And that hooked me, um. It hooked me into higher ed. It um that frontline service of working with, honestly, a lot of students who reminded me of the folks that I grew up with. Um, because there huge overlap with first-gen and military and veteran students. And from then on I was hooked in working in equity. In higher ed I moved to a couple of institutions around the DC area, started in student services, academic advising, then moved over to admissions and then realized that we could be doing a lot more with connecting data to making systems and work better within higher ed. So I moved into institutional effectiveness a little bit For a first time forward. I was working with an organization who did a lot to help what you know it's a plurality of our students in higher ed right now across that finish line, that degree. So that's how I ended up here.
Speaker 1:Awesome, thank you. Thank you, catherine. Okay, ashley, you're up next.
Speaker 4:Hi everyone. It's so great to be on the pod. Thanks for the invite. Jen Ashley Cassini-Young and I serve as the Associate Director for Expert Guidance with FirstGen Forward and I have been with FirstGen Forward actually just this past week for three official years. So prior to this I had the privilege of working really closely and getting to know Jen, getting to know you, jen through my work as the Associate Director for Network Engagement, and I oversaw institutions that had joined us in what we call the first phase of our journey. So I'm sure we'll talk to you a little bit more about that later.
Speaker 4:Prior to coming to FirstGen Forward, I was institution based at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. So for anyone listening, go Big Red, go Huskers. I am also a proud First Gen college graduate that didn't realize they were a First Gen either until I was in my master's program for higher education administration at the University of Missouri-St Louis. It was there that kind of all the pieces came together where I realized, oh, there were things I didn't know or experiences that I wasn't aware of, and it wasn't, to Martina's point, it wasn't because I was low income or from a super small town. Some of it had to do with the fact that I am a first-generation college student and so since then I've really made it my career focus to work with access programs and equity programs. So when I was at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, I was assistant director for the William H Thompson Scholars Program, which is a scholarship program, a comprehensive college transition program, really, for students who are supported by the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation. And then, while I was with the Thompson Scholars, I was asked to take on an additional appointment and to serve as the coordinator for first generation initiatives and efforts at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. So if you do the math, yes, that was a 1.25%. So if you do the math, yes, that was a 1.25%, 125% appointment at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Speaker 4:So, coming to First and Forward, I always joke that it's great to just have one job, which is lovely, but I really, really appreciated the work that I got to do at the University of Nebraska overseeing first generation initiatives with Dr Amy Goodburn, and in that role I served as the chair for First Generation Nebraska, which is their advisory board for first generation efforts. I also served as a contact, a primary contact, and a facilitator for the Midwest regional community, which is how I really came to know First Gen Forward, when it was known as the Center for First Generation Student Success. So well, last thing I'll share is that my claim to fame is that I am from a very, very small town in Nebraska. So if you look at the 2000 census, you'll see that it was 359 people and 1.4% Asian, and that was me, my brother and my sister. So that's my claim to fame. So if you ever find yourself in Platt Center, nebraska, and you say that you know Ashley Casina, everyone will know who you're talking about.
Speaker 1:All right, I love that. I love that. That's an awesome little factoid to know All right, wendy, you're up.
Speaker 5:Very happy to be here today. My name is Wendy Beasley and I have the pleasure of serving as the Director of Expert Guidance with First Gen Forward. Professionally, I've spent more than 25 years in higher education, most of which have been in the community college space. By complete accident, I took a 10-month temporary position at a community college and 22 years later retired from that position, having worked in most departments at the institution, having just fallen in love with the diversity of students, the range of programming and the way in which the community college experience really transforms students' lives, families' lives and the community. Personally, I was a first-gen student Before first-gen really was a thing. I worked my way through college with multiple work-study jobs and found that I really loved being in the college environment. And once I realized that there were other jobs besides faculty members that happen on a college campus, I decided that I wanted to share my experience and help others get the most out of their experience. So, like most people who are in student service types of roles, I went to college and just never left.
Speaker 1:I know exactly what that's like. I'm still working in college, loved college and then it was like, hey, I could do this for a living Awesome, thank you, wendy and Jennifer. You're up next.
Speaker 6:Yes, good morning. It's humbling and exciting to be here. I am Dr Jennifer Lukensutton, first-generation college graduate from a very small border town in the southern tip of Texas, and I am also very proud and honored to share that I am a TRIO success story. So I was in the upper-bound TRIO program in high school, then I was in the Student Support Services program in college. So had it not been for those programs, my life's trajectory would have changed and so much.
Speaker 6:Like some of the stories you've heard here, I was first-gen but didn't know it. But because of the region of the country where I grew up and the Upward Bound program, I knew that I needed more tools in my tool belt to go to college and be successful. It was actually after graduating and understanding this term first gen that I identified with it. I just knew that I was different and needed something to help me do better in college, because I was the first to go to a four-year institution and then therefore changed my family tree. So that's about me and then my experience.
Speaker 6:I'm new to the First Gen Forward family to this team. I joined three and a half months ago. Like Catherine, we started together and that comes after having a 23-year career at a public institution in Texas where I worked primarily in the TRIO student support services space. I worked in TRIO programs. It's one of those things that as you become a courageous servant in that space and serving others, you stick with it. I also, in my portfolio, have the honor of helping our Success, which is now First Gen, forward to the institution I worked at and helping usher in the change and getting them signed up in that organization as well.
Speaker 1:Awesome, this is fantastic. I have a feeling that, if we wanted to, this podcast could go several hours, but we will try to keep it within like the 45 minutes or an hour or so. Thank you so much for all sharing that and again for joining me today. There was this big change right from the center from first-generation student success to now first-gen forward so folks might not know that, so I want to point that out first that you are the center for first-gen student success, now called first-gen forward. Know that, so I want to point that out first that you are the Center for First Gen Student Success, now called First Gen Forward. What is it that you do? Like? How is somebody like me going to be helped by First Gen Forward, by whatever that looks like membership, or paying attention to the website, like talk? Some of you tell me about that a little bit.
Speaker 4:I want you to share a bit about the center and First Generation Forward.
Speaker 4:So I think many of us were drawn to the work with what's known as the Center for First Generation Student Success because of it really being the first and the premier space to find first-generation student support across the country. I know for me, when I was institution-based, I found myself frequently going to the Center for First-Generation Student Success for resources, for research, for support for best practices on how to not only build first-generation student support efforts at my institution but to also see what was happening across the country in supporting first-generation students. So the center, which, like I said, formerly known as Center for First-Generation Student Success first and Forward, now became its own nonprofit organization over this past summer, so in summer of 2024. And although our name has changed, really our mission to support those who are supporting first-gen students has not changed, and so, like I said, it's a privilege to have the opportunity to serve in this role and to really get a chance to see and observe those trends but also be an advocate and a voice for the practitioners that are doing the work on their college campuses.
Speaker 1:Anybody want to add anything to that?
Speaker 2:Yes, I think I'll also chime in here, too, about First Gen Forward. Some other offerings that we do provide, like the resources that Ashley mentioned, could come in the form of our journal, the Journal for First Generation Student Success. It may come from the blog post that we post on our website as well. It also may come through the different workshops that we offer and e-modules, so we have a new series of learning e-modules for individuals that are part of our network of programs involvement and for those institutions that are seeking to advance the work that they do to support first-gen students to think about how to institutionalize first-gen on their campuses. We do have, I guess you could say a phased program for lack of a better word to describe it where institutions could apply to become a network leader, where they're actually getting some individualized support, also taking some diagnostic tools that we utilize and incorporate it into the work. So a lot of those conversations become really strategic and also led by those of us who are here as the expert guys with our institution. So very, very individualized work to think critically about the work on their campuses and, again, how to scale up the services, because we know we love our trio but sometimes we need to reach those other students that are not being served and thinking about how to identify them.
Speaker 2:And the next stage for those institutions that are really like kind of moving the work forward, going above and beyond, like they are those national leaders in first-gen work, we do have an opportunity for them to apply, to become a part of our champion, our network champion phase, where they are really helping now to kind of contribute back to the work and also contributing to the modules, contributing to the to the work and also contributing to the modules, contributing to the workshops, being panelists, contributing to the literature and then also helping us to really think through and again continue to help support their first year students and further institutionalize the work on their campus. And I think I may be captured at all, but we have a robust website and a new website coming up. So a lot of that information shameless plug for the website for where all of these pieces are housed really, but that kind of, I believe, gives an overview really comes from the other offerings in addition to this really great network that's supporting all of our institutions across the country.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I think both of you pointed out so many great things. I mean, there's the kind of do-it-yourself. I need some information. I'm going to head to the First Gen Forward website and I can just see there's just a wealth of knowledge there from I want to call them abstract, but that's not the word. I'm looking for the annotated bibliography. There is research and landscape analysis there. You are absolutely correct, yeah.
Speaker 1:And then there's the current. There's the blog posts where people are talking about what it is they're doing. There's just so much good information there, as well as information about the upcoming conference, which we can plug later, but it's in June. It's the student success conference. You should all want to go as listeners. It's awesome and there's a specific track for first-gen folks.
Speaker 1:But that's not a shameless plug. I have no shame plugging that. So, as we're talking about all the things that you're doing and all the things going on at FirstGen Forward, there are trends that are coming up for first-generation students, based on just things that are going on in the United States, based on the new administration coming in. Just all kinds of things are happening. So can you talk to me a little bit about, like, what are you seeing? What are you getting ready for and maybe giving us I don't know like a heads up? What can we do and what can we look forward to or maybe not look forward to would be the right word, but what can we do at our institutions to help our first-gen students?
Speaker 5:And about that. One of the things that we are seeing nationally is not only a focus on retention and completion, but also highlighting belonging as one of those key metrics, and the challenge with that, of course, is measuring belonging and defining what belonging means to each institution. So those are the things that we are talking about with institutions what do you mean by belonging, and how does that support your particular community and how does that support your retention and completion as a guiding goal? So that's something that is really coming up in conversation much more frequently. And then, on the other end of the spectrum is not only career preparation but post-completion preparation in a very holistic way. Not only are we talking about career inventories, internships, interviews, resumes, but also graduate schools and longer-term career planning, but clothing closets, funds for travel, for interview preparation, so really taking a look at what happens after they leave us and in a way that's very, very supportive and really exciting for the students.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's fabulous, Catherine. I know you wanted to say something. And then Jennifer.
Speaker 3:I saw Jennifer, I didn't want to step on too much, I just wanted to. Wendy brought up a lot of really good points and I think a lot of that boils down to that, especially in higher ed. Right now we're at a really critical moment in discussing and really pushing to the forefront how data informed decision making in higher education can put us on the path to success and I think one of Wendy touched on it a lot with specific examples and belonging and career and post-degree readiness. And I think one of the most powerful aspects of data and how we use data specifically is how it challenges those assumptions and reveals where institutional barriers, specifically that might not be promoting belonging and not student capability, impacts success for first-gen students. So an example that I always use that comes to the forefront, which is student parents, who are predominantly first-gen students. They maintain an average GPA of 3.3 out of 4, and that's compared to about 2.8 for their non-parenting peers, but they are 10 times less likely to graduate. So statistics like that really illustrate how traditional deficit-based thinking fails our students and when we can expand lenses that lens.
Speaker 3:To look at first-generation students broadly, we see really similar patterns where institutional structures, not student ability, often create barriers. We had one institution who analyzed evening academic support services and they discovered that while evening hours had lower total headcount, students using those services had significantly higher course completion rates. So first-generation students who access services even once were 20% more likely to persist to the next term and many students accessing especially in community colleges in two years were working more than 20 hours per week while maintaining strong GPAs. So when we think about that, we need that data to drive those decision-makings because we might just be assuming students aren't using evening hours, that scrap it, and then you see the persistence and the retention data go down the next term and you might be left scratching your head thinking why. And it doesn't just drive institutional change, it's really transforming national policy conversations as well.
Speaker 3:I think when we see multiple institutions share similar findings like that, it creates momentum for change. We've seen federal policy shifts around FAFSA simplification. Now I know FAFSA is a hot topic right now, based on the last year or so, but a lot of the changes, while they were not ruled out beautifully, came from data showing how verification requirements disproportionately impacted first-gen students and a lot of state performance. Funding models are also being redesigned to account for institutions that serve high populations of first-gen students. So especially now, I mean I will always say in history it always should have been at the forefront, but I think this is an especially important time in higher education in the country to keep that at the forefront of change and thinking about how you can best support your first-gen students. I'll turn it over to John.
Speaker 1:I love that. Thank you.
Speaker 6:I want to echo what my colleagues have said. I'm trying to think like okay, what haven't they said that I can add to the conversation, and I think what I'll bring in is borrowing a framework from what I know is very popular in driving a lot of the Hispanic serving institution work, and it's this concept of not just being enrolling of students. Now, specifically because of the context, it's Hispanic enrolling because that, once an institution is designated as an HSI, there is access to federal funding dollars, currently from the US Department of Education, and that helps strengthen infrastructure in a lot of these campuses. It helps bring in programming and support, not to serve what is mistakenly understood as Hispanic students, but all students. But because of the Hispanic student enrollment, there is access to these funds, and I just wanted to make a clarifying point. But there's this framework of going from an enrolling institution to a serving. Well, now, instead of just serving populations, we need them to thrive, and so the field is challenging what is thrivingness? And so that has to do with not only graduating them, but employability. What careers are they going into? Graduating them, but employability, what careers are they going into?
Speaker 6:Students have been promised that higher education leads to better paying jobs. So are they attaining these higher paying jobs? Yes, you have your entry level jobs, but are they on career trajectories that are going to really change the economics, change the system? And so that is much discussion. That's happening. I know it's been going on for years in the Hispanic serving space, but I also see it happening in the first generation space as well, coming into first gen forward, where students and practitioners, faculty you know everybody who's on the ground in the day-to-day interactions of students are really encouraging students to keep going forward.
Speaker 6:And a lot of that does come back to what's been said earlier, which is this assets-based approach. Okay, so, in higher education we've talked about assets-based language. A lot of us look to the Clifton and StrengthsQuest for that, but there's also assets-based language in the communications that an institution sends out. Usually it's very positive, very warm, very friendly on the front end, to admit. But what does communications look like throughout a student's life cycle and how can it continue to be assets-based? How are staff and faculty talking as they interact with students on a daily basis? And so I just wanted to add that to the field so that way people can reflect on what their day-to-day influences are, because sometimes it's hard to figure out. Where can I start? How can I start to be a change agent? And so finding and building relationships with others on campus is one way, but also just reflecting on practices.
Speaker 2:And Jennifer, you made a valid point that I just wanted to reiterate that how we communicate with our first generation students is of importance. And you know, being in higher education, we have a lot of jargon, a lot. We love an acronym, and so we are just so into it and using it regularly. We often forget that we're talking to students and families or guardians or those peer groups that may not understand that language. So sometimes it's not really what we say, but sometimes it's how we say it or how we present it. I do think it is really important that we be mindful in our interactions First-gen students. I have found again I'm coming from the state of Kentucky we have a lot of rural students, but relationships are key. Trust is key for many of these individuals and if that feels like it's missing or I can't understand, or I feel like I'm being intimidated, or it kind of prevents those relationships from being built, allowing for some consistent communications and conversations.
Speaker 3:And beautifully said, martina. I just wanted to follow up with a quick thing too. Like, I think communication is great and representation goes right along with that too. Goes right along with that too In our intros. You've heard so many of my wonderful colleagues say that they didn't even recognize that they were first gen until often after they had their degrees, and that is something that in communicating that to students we need to communicate, that that is something to be celebrated, to be identified with that, and that comes through senior professors, senior administrators being represented and having those badges and wearing them proudly, having that identification be a really systemic indicator of pride and celebration. I think that goes right along with what Martina and Jennifer just said so beautifully.
Speaker 2:Thank you, jen, thank you, thank you, catherine. Thank you, Catherine, for acknowledging that and again, I think, having that lived experience as a first-gen student, sometimes I do forget about that. I tell others and share the importance, but sometimes I even forget it myself. Thank you.
Speaker 4:Ashley forget it myself.
Speaker 4:Thank you, ashley.
Speaker 4:I was just going to say that I think one of the other pieces that kind of ties all these things together is just the changing landscape of higher ed as we think about, for many of this.
Speaker 4:Many states are starting to anticipate the enrollment cliff that is happening in higher ed, that will be happening in higher ed, and so even just thinking about how institutions one institution that I work with closely as an expert guide recently went through a full restructuring at their institution in terms of their funding model and what programs are getting funding and who's being supported and I think all of that ties back to what Catherine said beautifully about needing that data-informed decision-making to understand and see what the impact of this work is. We always talk about how supporting first-generation students kind of began as, oh you know, we should support first-gen students why wouldn't we want those students? But it's quickly transitioning into okay. We need to thoughtfully retain and intentionally retain these students. We need these students to graduate, and so being able to understand where those opportunity gaps are at your institution through your data and then also using that information to anticipate the enrollment cliff that is happening, that will be happening across our country, is also, I think, something that I'm starting to see more at the forefront of people's minds.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think that's such a good point. You know the enrollment cliff. I also wonder like, are we looking? Do we just need to look at students differently and who could be a student? And it's not really an enrollment cliff, it's only an enrollment cliff for those we traditionally think of as college-bound students, and do we just need to broaden our perspective a little bit? I love all those points too.
Speaker 1:I think that assets-based language is important in that if we use that language for our first-gen students, we also use that for all of our students. And in serving first-gen, we really appreciate, lift up and empower all of our students on campus. Same with the data. You know, if we're breaking barriers for the first-gen students, we're doing it for all of our students and I think that's like an additional superpower that maybe we have working with first-gen students. We're doing it for all of our students. And I think that's like an additional superpower that maybe we have working with first-gen students is to look at the institution as a whole and say what's not serving our first-gen students? But it's probably not serving any of our students and how can we fix that. So I really appreciate it and I took some notes, because some of these things are great.
Speaker 1:Also, I've been in higher education for so long. I realized that 2025 is my 40th year working in higher ed. So, like I started when I was five. So you know, just so you know. But it really was. At first it was all about access and getting students into college Right, and you know that was the driver. And then it was access and success. Like what into college, right, and you know that was the driver. And then it was access and success. Like what does success look like? And it's great that they're here, but how do we retain them and how do we make sure that they graduate? And now it's that thriving. You know which is the success.
Speaker 1:But it's also focusing on what happens next, and that seems to really be where we're headed now is we're still working on these other things because they're not perfect, but we also need to say the degree. You know it's like for the students it's like I got into college, like that's such a milestone, it's awesome. It's like, yeah, but that's just chapter one. Like what happens next? You know, getting the degree, and now it's like, well, how do we get you into the professional career that you want to get into and paid at a level that is going to serve you and your family Because, as again we know, what first gen students do is a ripple effect that then goes to their family and their community and it's just a beautiful thing to see.
Speaker 1:So I've just talked a long time about all the things that you brought up, just to kind of reiterate on those, and I really appreciate you sharing that. I think I mean there is so much we could talk more about. But in the interest of you know, of your time, how can people get involved like that, with First Gen Forward speaking with either you or, if you want to do a bigger picture, you know how can people get involved and learn more about you all?
Speaker 4:I can speak a bit to how do institutions get involved with our network. So Martina highlighted a couple of the phases in our overall First Generation Forward network, but our network really starts with what we call the network member phase, so institutions that choose to engage with us in a larger community of practice. So we have over 400 institutions that are engaging with us across the country currently and the good news is, if you were like, hey, these ladies sound amazing, I wanna get involved, we have recruitment starting for our next class of institutions to join us in the network member phase of the First and Forward Network. So that application will open here in February and that application will then close in April. So if you want to find out more information about how to get involved with our network, check out our website. That's going to be a great place to start the network member phase.
Speaker 4:Like I said, it's kind of the entry point into our network and when we think about institutions that are poised and ready to join our network, there's a couple of things that we really want that institution to consider, the first being that they're ready for that level of commitment, because we do require ongoing engagement with our network because, like I said, it is a community of practice, and so one of the things that I know I really look at at an institution in evaluating the readiness to join our network is to understand what pieces do they already have in place at their institution in terms of do they have a council or a group to support their work? Do they have ongoing programs and initiatives that are happening to support their work? How is their work being tied back to the institution's overall priorities and strategy? The other piece that I look at is their ability to contribute to the community of practice and not just take from the community of practice. We want these folks to also be seen as experts in their field and in this work, and so those are a couple of things, like I said, that we tend to consider when we think about institutions joining us in that network member phase, because it is such a rich community and one that a lot of people find value in in terms of growing their own practice, and so, like I said, if you want to join us, application opens here in February, we'll close in April, and so please do check us out for more information about that.
Speaker 2:Fabulous. I would just like to add, as Ashley shared, we have over 400 institutions that are part of this larger network. I just want to share that that network contains not only four-year institutions. It also includes our two-year community and technical colleges. It includes, again, our primarily white institution. Also includes our HBCUs historically Black colleges and universities, Hispanic serving, minority serving, so it is public, private. We have a wide range of institutions that others can continue to draw from and learn from, so I wanted to put that out there, that there is an opportunity for institutions to find themselves within this network find themselves within this network and I'll just add, being a member of the network.
Speaker 1:I find it invaluable in so many different ways. Like learning from each other is probably the number one way knowing that there's a community out there of people doing this work. And in the New England area, you know, in our group, of course the best group ever, no, but being in the New England group is pretty fantastic. But even for things like and this might sound a little silly, but as an introvert going to conferences, like, I know people that I can connect with at the conference and some of my best conversations that I've had are the after the presentations or the I won't call it after hours, but the, you know, going out afterwards and sitting around with the people who I've only seen be this big on the screen and seeing that they're like full-bodied people and we're having just these great conversations about what it is we do. So I can absolutely recommend getting involved and certainly, if anybody wants to talk about it to a participant, I would be happy to answer any questions.
Speaker 2:Awesome. I came from the East Central region again, having been at the University of Kentucky and a better institution who was also a part of this program and has recently moved into the network champion phase. But I too found some of our regional community gatherings like the best part because I was able to pull so many different nuggets, ideas, recommendations and then think about how can I scale them at my institution. And, having left my institution about two years ago, many of those programs that I borrowed are still in effect because they were just great ideas and we were just able to put our own spin onto it.
Speaker 2:So, yes, being the introvert as well, I actually knew who I could look for and we could plan in advance to connect and have those conversations. So I do. Yes, you nailed that, jen, you know that because that was exactly how I felt. And, jennifer, you also recently came from an institution. I'm not sure how you felt about it, but I did find being a part of that network really provided me some great insight and support group and a safe space to throw out ideas or we're thinking about this, what do you think? But it gave me a nice safe space to again pitch ideas and get feedback, loved it.
Speaker 1:Yep, agree, agree, 100%. Any other things that you want to share about how people can get involved in FirstGen Forward? Anyone else want to add anything to what Ashley has said?
Speaker 6:I'll just add, because it kind of follows the trajectory of the institution that I was at.
Speaker 6:But if you don't know how or when to get started, if your institution is ready, but maybe you're an individual and you want to be a change agent, start by going to the website. Start by reading some of our e-learning modules and some of just the materials that we have on there to learn more about this space and how to contribute. And sometimes maybe your institution isn't ready to apply yet, but you can be an advocate and you can use a lot of our free resources to help inform your conversations, inform any committees that you're on to start getting the ground moving, and just know that change takes time. It took me four years to get the buy-in from the institution to apply to network member and although I was anxious and ready to get it done, I realized that because of the change that this was going to impact on the institution, it took time and it took information, and so that may be a great way to get. If you're in that place, that's a good way to start.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. I like to think that sometimes timing is everything right. Sometimes just keep asking, just keep pushing forward and eventually the time will, everything will align and timing will work out. Great Martina, did you want to say something?
Speaker 2:The last thing I wanted to share is that within First and Forward we do have opportunities where we are hosting recruitment sessions for others to attend and learn about.
Speaker 2:As Ashley mentioned, the NASPA's annual conference will be a space in which we'll be visiting and attending and also exhibiting and also presenting. So if institutions are interested and they're going to be attending NASPA's annual conference in New Orleans, they're more than welcome to stop by and visit with us. And we're also going to be a part of NASPA's annual student success in higher education conference, which is three conferences in one. Not only do you have the opportunity to engage in the first generation student success track, there's also a dismantling systemic barriers conference as well as an assessment, planning and data analytics. So three conferences, one space. You get to flow kind of and find and pick your path and what you're interested in learning about. And that is also a space where we are also present as First Gen Forward, whether presenting, exhibiting, but we will be out and about and making ourselves known and also ready to kind of sit down, have a chat, talk about the work that we do and the services that we can provide.
Speaker 1:Fantastic. Well, thank you all so much for joining me. I have, like I said, I have pages of notes. I love all the points that you shared and I know that you, listening, are walking away with some good information too, especially about how you can find out more that first gen forward does. Read their research, check out their website, and I will link to that in the show notes so you don't have to look look around for it. You can just link to the show notes and head to the website and I will have bios of all of the panelists today.
Speaker 1:So martina, catherine, ashley, wendy, jennifer, uh, thank you so much for joining me today. I really appreciate it and, as you know, if you want to reach me, you can always reach me at Jen that's J-E-N at firstgenfmcom, and I would be happy to hear about any topics that you want me to talk about. Or if you're doing an awesome program for your school and you want to talk about what that looks like, I would be more than happy to have you on the podcast. And you want to talk about what that looks like, I would be more than happy to have you on the podcast. So, thank you so much and I will talk with you again next week.