Celebrating students, faculty and staff who are first-generation college students or graduates, Quinnipiac joined colleges and universities across the country to mark National First-Generation College Student Day. The day commemorates the signing of the federal Higher Education Act on November 8, 1965. The landmark legislation and its funding programs helped make higher education more accessible to all.

With 13% of the Bobcat student population identifying as first-generation, Quinnipiac’s first-generation college celebration day offered an important opportunity to honor first-gen student stories, build community, and recognize their accomplishments, said Cheri Brooks, office of inclusive excellence (OIE) assistant director for student success and leadership.

Co-sponsored by OIE, The Learning Commons, and Graduate Student Affairs, the November 6 event gave participants the chance to share the story of their first-gen college journeys in words, poetry and song. Using thank-you cards provided at the event, attendees could also author a note of gratitude to those whose work and sacrifices led the way to fulfilling their academic dreams. Event organizers mailed each completed card.

The Common Hour event in the School of Business Auditorium on the South Quad gathered an enthusiastic audience who cheered on the day’s presenters, enjoyed tasty commemorative treats, and received free Bobcat men’s basketball season opening game tickets, courtesy of Quinnipiac Athletics. Together with take-away academic support information provided by event co-sponsors, The Learning Commons provided materials highlighting the many academic coaches, tools, resources, and skilled peers offering free assistance to students.

“We’re partners in your success,” said Jaime Rolando Flores, assistant director, Academic Development and Outreach. “We’re here to help you on this journey called college.”

As a proud first-generation college graduate, Quinnipiac President Marie Hardin joined the celebration and met with students in the audience to learn more about their first-gen academic journeys. Vice President for Inclusive Excellence John Armendariz welcomed Hardin to the podium.

“President Hardin, like many of you here today, is a first-generation college graduate. The journey that brought her here to Quinnipiac embodies the transformative power of education and opportunity, and her experience as a first-generation college student is one of the reasons she has a deep commitment to expanding educational pathways so that others can achieve their highest potential,” Armendariz said.

Hardin said it was an honor to share a common bond with the pioneering students, faculty and staff in the audience. She also emphasized the importance of recognizing those who helped to make their impactful academic journey possible.

“If you’re a first-gen college student or college graduate, you are a pioneer because you have made a decision to forge a new path. And maybe it was a teacher who inspired you to do that, or maybe it was a loved one who inspired you to do that — but somebody helped you make that decision to forge this path,” said Hardin. “This choice that you made will benefit you for the rest of your life, but it will also benefit those around you — your family and your community.”

Hardin said first-gen students at Quinnipiac can move forward with confidence and avoid the pitfalls of imposter syndrome by knowing they are on the right path and have a community of support.

“You can forge a new path, and you are doing it. And the evidence that you can do this is in the others who are here who are college graduates, who are here to support you and to help you — and that includes me,” Hardin said.

Hardin also encouraged all first-gen college students and college graduates in the audience to make use of the event’s thank-you notes.

“I took one because I want to write a note to someone who helped me and inspired me in high school. I hope that as you’re sitting here, you can think of someone you can say thank you to,” said Hardin.

Before sharing his poem, “Work,” Jason Koo, associate teaching professor of English, expressed how the first-gen student story, like his own, is often an immigrant story or begins with an immigrant story. As the child of parents who immigrated from South Korea, Koo reflected on the work a family’s first generation of immigrants does to create opportunities for their children. He also spoke about the challenges which many first-gen students may face.

“First-generation students often find themselves having to work much harder than their peers just to achieve and sustain success. And I would say this is usually out of the fear that we’re not good enough without proof of our achievements, especially in the United States,” Koo said. “I want to just take a moment to acknowledge that we first-generation students, especially if you are students here at Quinnipiac, are indeed worth something separate from your achievements.”

Senior Director of Live Channels Jamie DeLoma, '06, MS '11, discussed his first-gen Bobcat undergraduate and graduate journey.

Recalling then-Vice President Joe Biden’s hot-mic moment at President Barack Obama’s landmark signing of the 2010 Affordable Care Act (when Biden whispered to Obama, “…this is a big deal”), DeLoma said the comment touched off the Northstar guiding his view of life: to be mindful of the huge significance of the journey as it is happening.

“It’s important to pause in moments like this — to realize the big deal that all of us are charting together,” DeLoma said.

DeLoma also shared his experiences with imposter syndrome as an undergraduate, and the recognition that those who came before him, including his late great Aunt Betty, and grandmother, Jane, who raised him, equipped him with the tools to chart his own exciting course.

“As an undergraduate at Quinnipiac, I would sometimes wonder: Am I adequately prepared for this?’” said DeLoma. “But then I remember that one of the best things that we all have are the tools that those who came before us provided us. They gave us those map-making skills that enabled all of us to develop our own path, our own journey. And, for that, I think we are far better prepared than we realize.”

First-gen college graduate Stefano Fasulo, director of Graduate Student Affairs, spoke about the tools instilled in him by the work ethic his parents poured into their family-owned pizza business.

“As a first-gen student, what I didn’t realize until it was far too late, was the level of resilience and the ability to overcome challenges that I was given which others don’t have,” said Fasulo.

DeLoma said he could not imagine a greater example of realizing the American Dream than the ambition exhibited by so many in the room to be the first in their families to earn their degrees; nor a greater tribute to those who helped them to become first-generation students.

“As we approach the final part of this first semester of college for first-year students, or as we approach the twilight for graduating students, to look back and see all that you have accomplished  --  what you have done with each other, through partnerships with your faculty, your staff, through your peers, and through those who came before you, it’s such a beautiful tribute,” said DeLoma. “And I think it’s an incredible tribute to write these cards to those who came before us. Remembering those who held the door for us is so important, and it’s important for us to remember we need to hold the door for those who come after us.”

Briona Grant, assistant director for Inclusive Excellence and First-Year Seminar faculty, imparted some advice she received to help her to stay on the path she was forging as a first-gen college student. Grant advised first-gen students not to compare themselves to others; to celebrate their accomplishments; and know that their story is their strength. 
Grant also read the iconic Maya Angelou poem, “Still I Rise,” which Grant said inspired her during her first-gen college journey.

“This poem embodies all it means to be resilient, empowered, and defy all odds set against you,” said Grant.

Bobcats Valentina Guzman, ’29, a health science major from Forest Hills, New York; Charlyse LaMantia, ’26, MBA ’27, a mechanical engineering major from Lindenhurst, New York; and Areli Hernandez-Dolores, ’27, a psychology major from Penndel, Pennsylvania, shared what motivates them to succeed in their first-gen college journeys.

Hernandez-Dolores thanked her father for inspiring her to pursue her undergraduate degree.

“During June 2023, I was touring Quinnipiac with my dad, who was the one who pushed me to seek higher education,” said Hernandez-Dolores. “The whole entire day he had the biggest smile on his face. It reminded me that even though my parents weren’t able to have the opportunity to go to college, they were living it by me.”

Personal stories and words of advice were also shared by first-gen college graduate and graduate student Jody-Ann Ashielfie, ’25, MBA ’27; James Kirby, PhD, associate professor of chemistry; and Shizen (Jasper) Jia, PhD, assistant professor of business.

Hardin said first-gen college students are in the company of many accomplished individuals throughout history including Albert Einstein, Oprah Winfrey, Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg and U.S. Representative John Lewis.

“You are in very good company, and I hope you take every opportunity that you have here to move forward, knowing you have our support,” Hardin said.