Nashville State Shines Spotlight on First-generation Students

On my own. Isolated. Overwhelmed. Alone.

These are the feelings of many students as they navigate the world of higher education, with perhaps no group feeling these more strongly than that of first-generation students.

But Nashville State has a clear message to these students: You are not alone.

Last fall (2023), Nashville State and the Tennessee Board of Regents – the  statewide governing body for Tennessee’s community and technical colleges – partnered with the Center for First-generation Student Success to join their First Scholars Network.

This new program serves as a collaborative resource for colleges to provide a model of how best to embrace and empower first-generation students.

First-generation students are defined as students with neither parent nor legal guardian holding a bachelor’s degree from an institution within the United States.

They have always been a big part of the Nashville State community, with data showing that, as of Fall 2023, nearly half of all students attending are first-generation.

“This initiative has helped us form a plan and a process,” said Dr. Julie Williams, associate vice president of Student Affairs. “They share a lot of information and resources about how to do outreach and what kind of support and resources these students need.”

While Nashville State has always taken pride in addressing the needs of its diverse student body, “Being a part of this network has helped create a pathway for us,” Williams says.

As a part of this program, the College must meet milestones such as student outreach and awareness programs to alert this key population of students to all the school offers to help them succeed.

Williams says this program has helped zero in and ask, “How can we share information...what do you need to hear, how do you need to hear it?

“Often students can suffer from imposter syndrome; they worry, should I be here? Am I capable of this?”

With this new initiative, Nashville State is working to tackle these challenges head-on.

“We offer so much to help; sometimes the biggest challenge is helping students take advantage of all we offer,” Williams said.

When asked about how the College can best help first-generation students, Williams says building personal relationships is vital.

“It’s the personal relationship, that’s the whole thing with this focus on first-gen students,” Williams said. “We have to have personal relationships so we can connect them to the support and resources they need.”

Throughout all the programs and initiatives, the biggest message Williams hopes reaches students is that they are not alone and are proud of their accomplishments.

“We want a first-gen student to wear it as a badge of honor. It’s a great thing. Being a first-gen student is something to be very proud of.”