First Generation Students Redefined: Challenging Modern Day Perceptions Sandra Rodriguez Director, Center for Student Engagement Rocio Ayard Ochoa Assistant Director, Center for Student Engagement Jennifer Lowman Director, Student Persistence Research Rocio Introduce myself and introduce session. Turn it over to Sandy.

NASPA's Lead Initiative on Civic Learning and Democratic Engagement (Lead Initiative) is committed to encouraging and highlighting the work of student affairs in making civic learning and democratic engagement a part of every student's college education. Sandy The University of Nevada, Reno has been recognized as a LEAD institution, joining only 96 others nationally. The University of Nevada, Reno has also been named a LEAD Consulting Institution working with 8 other institutions on civic engagement initiatives. This designation comes from NASPA, which recognizes colleges and universities that are committed to civic learning and democratic engagement.

The University of Nevada, Reno Current Enrollment- 22,500 students Projected Enrollment in 5 years – 24,800 students Majority minority in 5-10 years First Year classes have already hit 43% Emerging Hispanic Serving Institution – 18% Currently 30% of our students are Pell eligible Estimate 45% of students are first generation 70% of students are on some form of financial aid Estimate 90% will be on financial aid by 2025 Access, persistence and graduation an imperative Graduating citizen students is a necessity Sandy Who is the The University of Nevada, Reno?

Social Integration, the College Experience & Responsible Citizenship Student Services, Academic Affairs, Extended Studies Student Governments Community Partners Service Recipients Persistence and Graduation Sandy Purpose

Sandy Introduce and discuss Model

Center for Student Engagement Works collaboratively with the Associated Students of the University of Nevada (ASUN) and The Office of the Associate Vice President for Student Life Services under the Division of Student Services. Purpose is to engage, educate and empower undergraduate students to take action in the best interest of the student body and the University community. Sandy

Center for Student Engagement Student Engagement fosters the development of student’s: Civic responsibility Responsible citizenship Leadership Personal growth. Dialogue is the heart of our curriculum and our advocacy. Completely funded by student government and receive no state funding Sandy

Activities Involvement Engagement Where do we go next? Overview Activities Involvement Engagement Where do we go next? Sandy Evolution of our center

Session Objectives first gen student perceptions & behaviors regarding civic engagement (CSE 2015) how participation in a club can positively impact college success (Tinto 2010, Astin 1993) next generation practices to engage first gen students to increase retention & graduation rates, self efficacy & agency (Bandura 1977, 2006) Rocio An understanding of…

Activity What are modern perceptions of first-gen students? (Attendee responses included) Lack of preparedness Motivation is lacking Poor gpa Lack of self efficacy in accessing resources No family support Rocio Divide group into smaller groups and discuss the following: common perceptions, research and stereotypes regarding first generation students (10 min)

Survey Purpose Establish a baseline related to CLDE Educational: create a common language Volunteerism, Activism, Self-governance Inform next generation practices Examine GPA, credit load & correlation to persistence Sandy "The Center for Student Engagement at the University of Nevada, Reno works with 244 active clubs and organizations that engage in campus, local, and national communities in a variety of ways. We recently conducted a survey sent to 1363 student club members exploring their perceptions regarding and participation in various forms of civic engagement defined by Thomas Ehrlich, 2000, as “working to make a difference in the civic life of our communities and developing the combination of knowledge, skills, values, and motivation to make that difference.” The types of civic engagement studied included volunteerism, community service, engaged scholarship, philanthropy, activism, and self-governance. Of the 382 respondents 120 self-identified as the first person in their immediate family to attend college. Cross tabulations were run in juxtaposition to students who did not self-identify as the first person to attend college in their immediate family and several significant differences were identified. This round table discussion will explore the key differences identified in the study and explore promising practices that could be implemented in regards to outreach and the facilitation of equity and inclusion for first-generation students in co-curricular civic learning and democratic engagement opportunities.“ 384 completed 28% complete rate (1363 students were sent the survey and ) Mixed methods (quantitative with 2 qualitative questions)

Survey Methodology Modeled after Tufts Sample Frame: 10 members from 244 clubs 384:1363 participants 28% participation rate Focused on Behavioral & Attitudinal questions Mixed methods Jen Modeled after the Tufts “National Survey of Civic and Political Engagement of Young People”

Cross Comparison – GPA, Credit Load, First Gen Status Of 384 survey participants, More first-gen women More likely to be Hispanic/Latinx More first-gen live off-campus First –gen club members carry more units each term & had a higher GPA

Cross Comparison – GPA, Credit Load, First Gen Status

Behavioral Results Of 382 Respondents 120 self-identified as first person in their immediate family to attend college (Definition in the survey) More likely to engage… community service volunteerism protest boycotted civil disobedience engage others in civil disobedience More likely to express views… on social media to an elected officials in a publication Jen Of 382 respondents 120 self-identified as the first person in their immediate family to attend college.

Attitudinal Results – First Gen Volunteering was a motivation to help others not to advance their career Significant Increased altruism among first-generation respondents (support) Jen– add finding from Question #5 Volunteering was a motivation to help others not to advance their career Discuss difference between attitudes and behaviors

Strategies related to first-gen students in clubs & orgs Connect first-gen students to clubs and organizations Higher GPA Positive attitude towards CLDE initiatives Engage civically at a higher rate than their peers Increase voter turnout by specifically connecting them to the democratic engagement process – Turbovote, etc. Formulate marketing strategies for positive identity development –Orientation message - First Gen Proud Develop and implement a social norming campaign that validates first gen students existing culture of civic engagement - I’m first gen and I vote! Frame our civic engagement outreach and implementation through clubs and organizations to a growing Hispanic student population – Emerging Hispanic Serving Institution Develop a civic engagement model for clubs and organizations – Club LEAD Jen & Sandy data are not strong enough to make a causal claim but there is a correlation. There are two possible explanations, right? It may be that clubs and orgs help students improve their GPA OR it may be that students who do better in school (already have a high GPA) are more likely to join clubs and orgs. Therefore, all you can say is that students in clubs and orgs have higher GPAs but you can’t explain why although we can speculate. During your talk you should discuss the two possible explanations given above and then you can provide an explanation if you think one is more probable than the other. In the Fall of 2016, the Center for Student Engagement will be implementing the Clubs & Orgs Civic Engagement Model (COCEM). The Clubs & Orgs Civic Engagement Model will allow the Center for Student Engagement to promote and engage clubs & organizations in Civic Learning and Democratic Engagement (CLDE). Furthermore, the Clubs & Orgs Civic Engagement Model will instill the development of knowledge, skills, values and motivation among clubs & orgs to make a difference in their communities (Ehrlich, 2000, vi). The Clubs & Orgs Civic Engagement Model will address the following goals: Promote and engage Clubs & Organizations in Civic Learning and Democratic Engagement Instill the development of knowledge, skills, values and motivation among clubs & orgs to make a difference in their communities (Ehrlich, 2000, vi). Lead 1: desire, initiative, & participation Tourist- curiosity Lead  2: engagement, leadership & knowledge Traveler- meaningful discovery Lead  3: connect/collaborate & take action Guide- alignment & internalization (awakening of conscious)

Implications for Practice GivePulse (intrusive intervention) clubLEAD Self efficacy Agency Sandy continued Givepulse- club renewal

Implications for Practice - GivePulse Sandy continued Givepulse- club renewal

Implications for Practice - clubLEAD Purposefully direct Clubs & Organizations toward Civic Learning & Democratic Engagement. Instill the development of knowledge, skills, values, and motivation among Clubs & Organizations to make a difference in their communities (Ehrlich, 2000, vi). Web link Sandy continued Givepulse- club renewal

Implications for Practice – Self Efficacy First Gen students in our survey were already motivated to give back to their community. Social Capital Collectivism Capitalizing on what they bring to our institutions Sandy continued Givepulse- club renewal

Implications for Practice - Agency Empowering students through (co)curricular strategies that; engage them meaningfully, respect their voices and lived experiences as valued within higher education, connect them to their responsibilities within their communities, promote meaningful relationships, help them see themselves in a holistic sense, help them to understand their interconnectedness to the world in which they live….taking charge of their learning to ACT to make communities a better place. What and how we teach matters. Sandy continued Givepulse- club renewal

Conclusion So where do we go next? Why Research Continued assessment Adding to the body of knowledge Why Activities Involvement Engagement Next Generation Practices! Sandy

Sandra Rodriguez srodz@unr.edu Rocio Ayard Ochoa rayardochoa@unr.edu Jennifer Lowman jlowman@unr.edu Rocio