Growing up in Idaho as the daughter of Mexican immigrants, Maria Jimenez, SPA/BA ’25, MA ’26, didn’t think of herself as working towards becoming a first-generation college student.

Those words simply weren’t used.

Her parents’ work ethic—including her father’s dedication to his job as a dairy farm worker—instilled in her a passion to chase after her dreams. She set her sights on college—a goal she realized when she enrolled at the College of Southern Idaho. But then came the questions.

“Wait. What do I do now?” Jimenez asked herself.

Through a process of trial and error and learning to navigate her way through classes, she earned her associate’s degree and enrolled at AU. But it wasn’t until she arrived in DC that she realized her experience—blazing a trail for her family without an example to follow—was unusual in higher education.

“Coming to AU was when it hit me—that I was first,” said Jimenez, who’s majoring in justice and law. “Back home, it wasn’t a big deal, because everyone was first-gen at my school. Coming here, it was really nice to find a community.”

Community is at the heart of this week’s festivities for National First-Generation Week, a celebration of students like Jimenez who are the first in their families to go to college. To mark the occasion, AU’s Center for Diversity and Inclusion (CDI) is holding a series of events to provide visibility for those trailblazing students, including a celebratory dinner on Wednesday night and a belonging panel on Thursday featuring a conversation with students, staff, faculty, and alumni in a conversation about the first-generation journeys. Programming also included a T-shirt giveaway and a paint-and-sip night at the Bridge.

Jimenez worked with CDI staff and Jessica Thompson, SOC-CAS/BA ’24, and Borsha Sarker, SPA-CAS/BA ’25—her fellow executives in AU’s First-Generation Student Union—to plan the slate of events aimed at fostering inclusion.

“This week is concrete proof that our university is here for us, and that our university cares about supporting us,” said Thompson, union president. “The events seek to build community and the skills of first-generation students and ensure the success of the first-generation community.”

Roughly 1 in 12 undergraduates at AU is a first-generation college student, including 11 percent of the Class of 2027, according to data from the Office of Enrollment. Since 2020, AU has seen increase in the number of applicants and admits from first-generation backgrounds; preliminary data for fall 2023 also indicates there are 80 more first-generation students on campus this year than in 2022.

AU defines a first-generation student as one for whom neither parent advanced past a high school education. Starting with students enrolling in fall 2024, AU will expand that definition to include any student whose parents have not earned a bachelor’s degree.

“To be an engine that promotes access, opportunity, and social mobility in society is one of the university’s highest callings,” said Evelyn Thimba, vice president of undergraduate enrollment management. “Ensuring that we attract and enroll students who are first in their family to attend a four-year university means that we must have intentionality in our recruitment efforts and be a place where these students have a sense of belonging.”

The success of first-generation students matters because it snowballs to others, Thompson said. For example, she is now helping her younger brother apply to college.  

“The goal is you open the door, and they can come behind you,” Thompson said. “Navigating financial aid [without any] experience poses a lot of unique challenges and obstacles. Part of being first-gen is connecting with others that may have resources you don’t have and building a network to support each other, so we can be successful and all change the trajectory of our futures.”