December 12, 2023
Kaylee Christian, an Ironton, Ohio native, has found the I Am First Gen program – a mentorship program for first-generation college students – at Shawnee State University to be extremely helpful in guiding her though her college experience. Christian is the first person in her family to attend college pursuing a bachelor’s degree.
“The I Am First Gen program at Shawnee encouraged me because I don’t have a parent who went to college and got a bachelor’s degree,” Christian said. “I needed the guidance, and this program and mentorship helps me to be successful here.”
Christian, a junior in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, has a mentor in the program who is there to guide her through anything college throws her way. Any student who is a first-generation is able to sign up for a mentor. Many of the mentors are faculty and staff members on campus who were also the first in their families to attend college.
“My mentor is Rebecca Mosely,” Christian said. “She’s a professor in the C.H. Lute School of Business. Questionnaires were sent out and we were paired with a mentor that we would click with.”
The I Am First Gen mentoring program has been a useful tool for Christian while going through the Nursing program. She has found her mentor to be a helpful resource.
“She motivates me to do better, and I can reach out to her with any questions,” Christian said. “For Nursing especially, I feel like you have to study a different type of way, so I needed studying tips and Rebecca was willing to help out.”
To learn more about the I Am First Gen program at Shawnee State University, visit shawnee.edu/firstgen.