NEIU Libraries Research Guides: @NEIU Libraries Now: NEIU's First-Generation Day

NEIU's First-Generation Day!

On November 8, 2017, the Council for Opportunity in Education and NASPA’s Center for First-generation
Student Success launched the inaugural First-Generation College Celebration. Since then, hundreds of colleges across the nation have continued to mark this date – the anniversary of the signing of the Higher Education Act of 1965 – as a day to celebrate first-generation students on their campuses.

TRIO Student Support Services invites all NEIU students to attend its Fall 2023 Leading & Learning Week, Nov. 6-10. Space is limited for this awesome lineup of free presentations both in person and via Zoom, so advance sign-up is recommended. This fall’s theme is University and Beyond: Preparing for Life after Graduation.

And also celebrate by checking out these online resources available through the NEIU Libraries!

E-books available for download

Faculty and First-Generation College Students by TL Staff; Vickie L. Harvey (Editor); Teresa Heinz Housel (Editor)
ISBN: 9781118142141
Publication Date: 2011-10-11
Gain a greater understanding of the academic, cultural, and social experiences of first-generation college students (FGS). Fascinating, heart-touching, and important, the research and the stories presented here enlighten what FGS often have to overcome to successfully complete their degrees. .
Geographies of Campus Inequality by Janel E. Benson; Elizabeth M. Lee
ISBN: 9780190848156
Publication Date: 2020-08-14
In efforts to improve equity, selective college campuses are increasingly focused on recruiting and retaining first-generation students-those whose parents have not graduated from college. In Geographies of Campus Inequality, sociologists Benson and Lee argue that these approaches may fall short if they fail to consider the complex ways first-generation status intersects with race, ethnicity, and gender.
Straddling Class in the Academy by Sonja Ardoin (Editor); Becky Martinez (Editor); Jamie Washington
ISBN: 9781620367391
Publication Date: 2019-05-22
Through 26 narratives of individuals from working class backgrounds - ranging from students, to multiple levels of administrators and faculty, both tenured and non-tenured - this book provides a vivid understanding of how people can experience and straddle class in the middle, upper, or even elitist class contexts of the academy.
First Generation Entry into Higher Education by Liz Thomas; Jocey Quinn
ISBN: 9780335217908
Publication Date: 2006-12-01
This book does not focus simply on the employment prospects of first generation higher education entrants but rather engages with the wider possibilities of social engagement and transformation that can arise from participation in higher education. It provides essential reading for administrators, policy-makers, managers, academics and indeed anyone else interested in how to widen the socio-economic base of higher education so that the process is informed by a significant concern with social justice and reducing inequality.
Creating the Path to Success in the Classroom by Kathleen F. Gabriel
ISBN: 9781579225551
Publication Date: 2018-04-16
This is a book for all faculty who are concerned with promoting the persistence of all students whom they teach. Most recognize that faculty play a major role in student retention and success because they typically have more direct contact with students than others on campus. However, little attention has been paid to role of the faculty in this specific mission or to the corresponding characteristics of teaching, teacher-student interactions, and connection to student affairs activities that lead to students' long-term engagement, to their academic success, and ultimately to graduation.
Success for All by Melisa N. Choroszy (Editor); Theodor M. Meek (Editor)
ISBN: 9781948908580
Publication Date: 2020-04-15
While the most important measure of success for many degree-seeking students is the timely attainment of a Bachelor's degree, there remains a host of other indicators of student success that vary by student population and students' personal goals. Many of these smaller successes lead to the ultimate goal of graduation and are significant triumphs throughout the journey through higher education.

Streaming video

First in the Family: Help your college student succeed and prosper the first year and every year
This video equips parents of first-generation college students with information and tools to prepare and support their college student.
How Faculty Mentors Can Help First-Generation Students Succeed
A new initiative by the University of California system uses first-generation faculty to guide first-generation students, with the goal of decreasing dropout rates.