Keeping the Promise

First-generation Students Receive a Helping Hand

Navigating the maze of college for a firstgeneration student may start simply with understanding terminology, the entry process, applications and financial aid.

They’re challenges most students face. Perhaps a fundamental difference for a first-generation college student, however, is having parents or families who may not be as familiar with the experience, either.

At PC, Dr. Amy Davis, director of Academic Success and Retention, said it’s essential to support and create wrap-around programming for this student group, which is anticipated to grow.

Three out of every 10 new students at PC are firstgeneration students. The first-generation definition currently used at PC is that neither parent nor guardian graduated from a college or university in the United States with a bachelor’s degree.

Support for first-generation students may start with getting a grasp on lingo, but it also includes support services like orientation sessions for parents and helping students understand expectations in college classes, critical thinking skills, utilizing resources, and asking for help.

It’s also overcoming stigma. The idea that many first-generation students come from the same social backgrounds or they are not as academically prepared “is not the case at all,” Davis said.

To aid in these efforts, the College has brought onboard a coordinator for its first-generation program through the generous support of PC Board of Trustees member Louise Slater.

In addition, a gift from Ted ’73 and Karen Ramsaur provides students exposure to the arts, including events at the Peace Center in Greenville, S.C.

“One of our missions is to help students who might not otherwise get to go to college, who are capable and are excellent students, overcome barriers and get that college degree,” Slater said. “That’s something that I’ve been passionate about for a long time.”

Slater’s practice, The Price Group, provides educational consulting to young people, and she’s also helped a firstgeneration student choose and graduate from PC.

Her philanthropic spirit comes from her father, Bill Rogers, who was known for his generous philanthropy in the Midlands.

“He was very much involved in helping people succeed and grow,” Slater said.

The Ramsaurs have long been involved with both the performing and visual arts. Ted’s mother, Dorothy Ann Peace Ramsaur, was a member of the Peace family, the namesake of the Peace Center in downtown Greenville. He says the center’s wide breadth of entertainment options that may be available to students includes Broadway plays, symphonies, ballet, jazz and popular music.

“One of the great things about my PC experience was the liberal arts experience,” he said. “Along the way I had an opportunity to take a theater course, a music course, along with all the other math, biology, history and English courses. It was an important part of my experience to have that sort of exposure.

“I think in any young person’s life, coming up in college, particularly the liberal arts experience, the broader that experience can be, the more opportunities they can have to be exposed to things, particularly in the arts: It’s a huge gain in their lives.”

As for the program and its new coordinator, Slater believes the most important thing in overcoming barriers is building great relationships.

“When somebody feels that they’re safe enough, that they can be vulnerable enough and say, ‘I really don’t understand what you just said. I don’t understand this procedure,’ or, ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about.’ That takes bravery, and it takes a level of trust, and that’s what I think we’re working toward, and that’s exciting.

“You want all students to have that level of comfort with their professors and with their college, where they feel like they’re part of the community and welcome.”

Stephanie Keene joined PC as the program coordinator and associate director of Academic Success in January 2020. Keene is a higher education professional and former academics programs coordinator at the Department of Radiology, University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas.

Her role will focus on developing, implementing and sustaining services around first-generation student success, retention and persistence for the College of Arts and Sciences.

When she was a college student, Keene said staff at her college stepped in when they saw she wasn’t as involved or utilizing the resources available to her. She wants firstgeneration students at PC to build those relationships, too, and get involved.

Keene says she’s first focused on creating a presence and wants the programming to be inclusive. The students often have a “plus,” she added, referring to the fact that many first-generation students identify in other groups. She’s also anticipating collaboration from other students, staff, faculty and alumni, including those with firstgeneration backgrounds.