Every student who arrives at college for the first time is faced with challenges. They encounter a new community of people and new academic expectations. For many, it鈥檚 their first foray into independence, with all the risks and responsibilities that are part of that adventure. For first-generation college students, like recent graduate聽, there are added complexities. As a student and father, he had to navigate a world that his family couldn鈥檛 prepare him for while trying to balance his son鈥檚 needs as he聽earned聽his degree in law and policy.
What Christopher and other first generation students encounter is sometimes called the 鈥渋nvisible curriculum,鈥� the set of unwritten rules and best practices that college graduates pass down to their college-bound children. Whether going on college tours, navigating the application process, picking a major or a faculty advisor, having someone in your corner who knows the ropes is reassuring.
At the 91探花, we are committed to doing all that we can to equip first-generation students with the tools and resources to help them navigate college. Today we join universities nationwide during the inaugural , organized by the Council for Opportunity in Education, to honor and support these students.
Nearly 35 percent of undergraduates enrolled across our three 91探花campuses are first-generation students. At 91探花Bothell, just over 40 percent of students are the first in their family to pursue a 4-year degree. And at first-generation college students are actually a slight majority at just over 50 percent. 91探花Tacoma Chancellor Mark Pagano is himself a first-generation college graduate and what it was like to try to balance supporting his family鈥檚 financial well-being with completing his degree.
To our first-generation students, we know many of you still face that difficult balancing act, and that you often find yourself navigating a college environment without the benefit of guidance from older family members who made the same journey. We know that financial barriers can loom especially tall, and we will do all that we can, through the Husky Promise and other programs, to ensure that financial need doesn鈥檛 stand in your way. Today 鈥� and every day 鈥� we are so glad you decided to join our community. Your professors, student life and academic advisors and your classmates are here to support you as you achieve your dreams.