Texas State Celebrates First-Gen Week
#CelebrateFirstGen
First Gen Celebration
Celebrate First Gen Week with us on November 7th through November 11th. Many events will be hosted at both Round Rock and San Marcos Texas State campuses where a mixture of departments recognize the hard efforts of first generation college students and their success. The events celebrate students (undergraduate and graduate), faculty, staff, and alumni for their achievements made in the community.
November 8th dates the national First-Generation College Celebration in which President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Higher Education Act, ensuring that strength and encouragement are provided in educational prospects.
EVENTS
2022
Monday, November 7
Round Rock Campus Information Table
Location: Avery Atrium | 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
First Gen Round Rock students are encouraged to stop by to learn more about First Gen Proud and activities that support First Gen students in Round Rock. Snacks and refreshments will be provided.
First Gen Faculty Panel: What Does it Mean to Be First Gen?
Location: Alkek Library, Room 240 | 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM
Panelists:
- Dr. Merritt Drewery, Assistant Professor, Applied Animal Science
- Dr. Kristen Lew, Assistant Professor, Mathematics
- Dr. Scott Bowman, Professor, Criminal Justice & Criminology
Moderator: Mr. Rafael Almanzar, Director for First Gen Student Success
Click here to RSVP
Join Drs. Drewery, Lew, Bowman for a discussion on their experiences as first generation college students and how they are supporting first generation college students at TXST. All first generation students (undergraduate and graduate) are encouraged to attend. Bring your questions and your friends!
Tuesday, November 8
Round Rock Campus Information Table
Location: Avery Atrium | 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
First Gen Round Rock students are encouraged to stop by to learn more about First Gen Proud and activities that support First Gen students in Round Rock. Snacks and refreshments will be provided.
The Future is Bright: Reaching Back and Paying it Forward
Location: LBJ Ballroom | 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Speaker: Dr. Stephen Santa-Ramirez, Assistant Professor of Higher Education, University of Buffalo
Click here to RSVP
Dr. Stephen Santa-Ramirez (he/him/his) will engage the audience in a talk centering on his lived experiences as the first in his family to attend and graduate from college and share his research study findings that center on the experiences of first-generation college students. Further, he will open a dialogue on how to pay it forward to celebrate and best support first-generation collegians.
All first generation students (undergraduate & graduate) are encourage to attend.
This event is in collaboration with Faculty Development, Common Experience, TRIO, and The Center for Diversity & Gender Studies.
Test Anxiety? You're Not Alone
Location: Hybrid | 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Audience: First Gen Students (undergraduate & graduate)
Register Here for In Person Option | LBJ Student Center Room 3-21.2
Register Here for Zoom Option
Test anxiety is a common student experience. Let’s talk about it and learn techniques for identifying, managing, and succeeding through it! Free food provided, first come, first served.
Assets, Power, and Strength: First-generation College Students & Ways to Support Them
Location: Encino Hall, Room 223 / Zoom | 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM
Dr. Stephen Santa-Ramirez, Assistant Professor of Higher Education, University of Buffalo
Click Here to Register In-person
Click Here to Register for Zoom
In this workshop, Dr. Stephen Santa-Ramirez (he/him/his) will share research findings on the various skills, assets, talents, and cultural capital first-generation collegians bring to college campuses. Further, he will engage in a workshop activity and dialogue with audience members on best practices to support and celebrate these scholars. A reception will follow to engage with Dr. Santa-Ramirez.
All faculty, staff members, and graduate (master and doctoral) students at TXST who want to learn how to better support first-generation college students are welcome.
This event is in collaboration with Faculty Development, Common Experience, TRIO, and The Center for Diversity & Gender Studies.
Counter-Life Herstories Conference
The annual Counter-Life Herstories Conference shares women of color’s narratives in a live, TEDx-style format with girls of color in grades 5-12 in Central Texas. The purpose of this conference is to build an interdisciplinary team of education researchers, policymakers, and high-tech leaders in Central Texas to explore opportunities to investigate women’s diverse experiences in the STEM+Computing workforce in Central Texas
Facilitator: Dr. Toni Moreno
Wednesday, November 9
Round Rock Campus Information Table
Location: Avery Atrium | 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
First Gen Round Rock students are encouraged to stop by to learn more about First Gen Proud and activities that support First Gen students in Round Rock. Snacks and refreshments will be provided.
"Once a First Gen, Always a First Gen" Panel Discussion
Location: Virtual | 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Panelists:
- Camrie Pipper, Doctoral Student in Development Education & Assistant Director of The Common Experience
- Dr. Sidney Anderson, Associate Professor, Department of Marketing
- Dr. Rosina Valle, Program Coordinator II, University College
- Dr. Wade Hindes, Assistant Professor, Mathematics
Facilitator: Austin Allen
Moderator: Dr. Toni Moreno
Click Here to Register
Are you a first-gen undergraduate student interested in pursuing graduate studies? Do you want to hear from first-gen graduate degree holders? The Graduate College hosts a special online information session titled Once a First-Gen, Always a First-Gen for first-gen undergraduate students, which is held in the form of a panel discussion with successful first-gen graduate degree holders. The panel discussion focuses on topics such as the panelists’ experience in graduate education, challenges they overcame, resources they found useful, and advice for current first-gen undergraduate students.
The Good, The Bad & The Ugly: Honest First Gen Conversations
Location: Undergraduate Academic Center (UAC) 124 | Time: 12:30 PM - 2:00 PM
Audience: First Gen Students (undergrad and graduate) | Click Here to Register
Being a first-generation student comes with a lot of challenges. Often, we struggle communicating our everyday obstacles to our families and those closest to us. Join your fellow first-gen students for pizza and good conversations centered on first-gen issues. Through this event, students will be able to identify first-gen issues affecting their academic or personal success. Students will also voice how they are being supported and ways they wish they were supported.
Contact: Yesenia Lares-Martinez y_l31@txstate.edu OR Millie Muratalla milliem@txstate.edu
Financial Planning with Bobcat Gold
Location: Alkek Library, Room 240 | 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM
Presenter: Dr. Terrance McClain, Associate Director, Success Coaching
Click Here to RSVP
Find strategies on how to protect your financial future as a student. This session will be a springboard for students' learning about financial education and how you can earn free money to support your education.
All first generation college students are encouraged to attend.
Department of English - First Gen Mixer
Location: Flowers Hall, Room 230 | 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Audience: Dept of English's First Gen Students
Department of English - First Gen Mixer
Click Here to RSVP
Come join first gen students (graduate and undergraduate), faculty, and supporters to share stories about navigating life in college! This will be a space to meet new people, find a mentor, enjoy food, and share pride about what it means to be first-gen.
1st Generation Latinas in STEMpreneurs
Location: Alkek Library, Room 441 / Zoom (live-stream)
5:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Click Here to RSVP for In-person
The Center for Diversity and Gender Studies at TXST is planning a day to celebrate the achievments of First-Generation Latina STEMpreneurs. Our panelists will share their stories of success, resilience, and backgrounds, while discussing their current roles and impact as Latin STEMpreneurs. A Q&A session will follow. Our panelists includes:
- Reavelyn Pray, National Science Foundation Innovation Challenge Winner, Research Associate II, Natera
- Marcella Juarez, Pablo Blanco Farm and Ranch Owner and Farm Manager
- Ana Maria Jaramillo, Owner/Founder of Voz Speech Therapy Inc.
- Tatiana Chamorro, Co-founder of HITE Inc, 5000 Real Estate Investor, Top 20 Women in Advertisin, and 2022 AAF Dallas
Moderator: Dr. Carolyn Chang, Director for Generación STEM
We support the achievements of Latina STEMpreneurs. Our aim is to bring awareness to the underrepresentation/disparities in the STEM workforce, where Hispanics represent 8% of STEM employment and lower for Hispanic women. Significantly the purpose is for our panelists to inspire important discussions on their career paths and share their backgrounds with college and students from Eastside Early College High School who are interested in STEM careers and entrepreneurship.
Thursday, November 10
Getting Cozy with COSE
Location: Near El Vaquero Statue (Outside Old Main) | 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Audience: College of Science and Engineering First Gen Community
The College of Science and Engineering (CoSE) will host a welcome and networking reception for its first-generation students, faculty, and staff on Thursday, November 10, from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., in the Chemistry quad by the Vaquero statue.
This event will feature:
- Welcome from the College of Science and Engineering Dean's Office
- Networking activities
- Opportunity to meet first-gen focused programs, student organizations and resources
- Networking with other first-gen students, faculty, and staff
- Light refreshments, photo booth, giveaway items, and raffle prizes!
All College of Science and Engineering first-gen students (undergraduate & graduate level) and post-docs are welcome to attend this free event, advance registration is requested.
First Gen Celebration at Round Rock Campus
Location: Avery Building, Room 256 | 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Come join first gen students (graduate and undergraduate), faculty and supporters at the Round Rock campus. This will be a space to meet new people and share stories about navigating college as a first gen student.
“(Re)visiting First-Generation Students’ Experiences in STEM!”
Location: Comal Building Room 0103 | 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Click Here to Register
Professional Development Series, part of the STEM Communities Project: (Re)framing STEM Instruction at an HSI (Hispanic Serving Institution)
44% of students at Texas State identify as first-generation college students. In this session, we will facilitate an open-formatted dialogue amongst faculty and students to discuss “first generation” student experiences in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). Participants will hear stories from students and faculty who identify as first-generation college students and share their own personal narratives. We will discuss the significance of attending an HSI, how our interests for STEM came to fruition, our cultural histories/backgrounds, and how these relate to our experiences in the classroom. We will end by considering how this experiential knowledge can help us to create positive learning environments in our classrooms. Participants will leave with a better sense of first-generation STEM students’ experiences and how they can support first-generation STEM students in the classroom.
This event is intended for TXST faculty and staff members.
Friday, November 11
McCoy College of Business | First Gen Networking Reception
Location: Minifie Atrium | MCOY 434 | 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Audience: McCoy College of Business First Gen Students
McCoy College of Business will host a welcome and networking reception for its first-generation students, faculty, and staff.
Click Here to Register
The event will feature:
- Welcome from the McCoy College Dean’s Office
- McCoy College faculty, staff, and upperclassmen sharing their first-gen experiences
- Student mentoring connections
- Opportunities to meet student organizations and affinity group leaders
- Networking with other first-gen students, faculty, and staff
- Light refreshments, photo booth, giveaway items, and door prizes!