VALUE OF CONN First-generation and neo-traditional students look to mentors, community, and family for inspiration THE
For Sanjeet Singh, it was a professor who supported his research. For Jaeda Nelson, it was a roommate who invited her to a club. For Alejandra Cruz-Martinez, it was a community of student leaders who set an example. These first-generation students came to CWU with different interests, challenges, and hopes, but each stayed for the same reason: connection with people who cared. The Fall 2021 enrollment census showed 45% of CWU’s first-year students and 51% of transfer students were first-generation, meaning their parents do not have a bachelor’s degree. This affects their access to advice and experience to help them navigate the complexities of college. They’re not alone in their need for support. Higher education researchers Stephen Handel and Eileen Stempel group first-generation students with students from historically underrepresented backgrounds, student-parents, low-income students, and older students into a new category, “neo-traditional”— so called because they’re now the norm, making up 76% of American college students.
The College of Business aims to address this wide range of needs with programs and opportunities rooted in a stu- dent-centered, caring community of faculty, staff, alumni, and peers. “We’re an institution and we’re a college that is about op- portunities and about access for students,” Dean Jeffrey Stinson said. “While that’s not exclusive to first-gen - eration students, we’re a place where first-generation students can come and succeed.” The Value of a Mentor Though senior Sanjeet Singh is a first-generation student, he came to college knowing research could be a valuable part of his experience. In 2020, Singh was accepted into the federal Mc- Nair Scholars Program, which funds research and scholarship for first-generation and underrepre - sented students to prepare them to pursue a doctorate. “I wanted to have a research problem that actually existed in the real world,” said Singh, a double-major in human resources management and psychology from Vancouver. He found the perfect project with Erica Holley, an associate professor of management at CWU-Lynnwood. The two worked on a survey of how employees responded to their managers’ leadership styles over Zoom, and Singh discovered an interest in workplace culture.
Sanjeet Singh (’22)
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