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Celebrations planned for first-generation students

Student Support Services and the Nanook Diversity and Action Center are proud to present a series of events to celebrate first-generation students. More than half of ���۴�ý students are the first in their families to pursue higher education.

Friday, November 4

Leadership Lunch with Richard Taylor
Noon-1:30 p.m.
Hess Recreation Center, MBS
Advance registration required.

Join the ���۴�ý Student Leadership and Involvement Center and First-Gen AK for a Leadership Lunch with Richard Taylor Jr. Richard is a national speaker, first-gen alum, and author who is joining ���۴�ý as part of the National First-Gen Day Celebration. This leadership lunch is open to any ���۴�ý student interested in leadership or involved in a student club. Free lunch will be offered and represented student clubs will be entered for a drawing for $100 in club funds (three winners will be drawn)! Copies of Richard's book 31 Days of Power will be available. Students can RSVP. 

An Evening with Richard Taylor
4:30-6 p.m.
Wood Center multilevel lounge

Join ���۴�ý First-Gen as we celebrate National First-Generation College Day with national speaker and author (and TRIO SSS alum) Richard Taylor Jr. Richard's message breaks cultural boundaries and challenges bias social norms around the topics of mental health and student resilience. Richard inspires those to tap into their inner potential to create the change they want to see. A small reception will follow and Richard's book 31 Days of Power-A Simplified Approach To Every Day Mental Health will be available (while supplies last) for ���۴�ý First-Gen students. First-Gen students who check-in at the event will also be entered for a $500 tuition scholarship! This event is made possible with generous sponsorship from Alaska EPSCoR, the ���۴�ý Alumni Association and ���۴�ý First-Gen.

Saturday, November 5

First-Generation Student Pinning Ceremony
1-2:30 p.m.
Regents Great Hall, Fine Arts Complex
Students: please in advance.

The First-Gen AK team is thrilled to invite ���۴�ý First-Gen students and supporters to our inaugural First-Gen Pinning Ceremony. The Pinning Ceremony is a celebration to honor the resilience and dedication each first-generation college student demonstrates on their path to and through higher education. National speaker and first-gen alum, Richard Taylor Jr. will be our keynote speaker, followed by Vice Chancellor Owen Guthrie who will share remarks and aid in the pinning of first-gen students. First-Gen students who would like to participate in the ceremony should no later than Friday, Nov. 4, 2022. Visit www.uaf.edu/firstgen for a complete list of first-gen events. A short, catered reception will follow the ceremony, and two $500 scholarships will be awarded to first-gen attendees in a randomized drawing (students must be present to win).

Tuesday, November 8

First-Generation Celebration
Noon-2 p.m.
Wood Center, Arctic Java
Come by to enjoy a cupcake and celebrate with other members of ���۴�ý’s first-gen community.

First-Generation Pub Trivia
8 p.m.
Wood Center Pub

Join us for an evening of “first”-themed trivia in celebration of the National First-Generation College Celebration. The National First-Generation College Celebration is held annually on Nov. 8 to honor the anniversary of the signing of the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965. Much like other hallmark legislation of that era, such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, HEA was intended to help level a playing field that for too long had been weighed against Americans from minority and low-income backgrounds. In addition to creating federal grants and loan programs to help students finance their educations, the legislation made key investments in higher education institutions. The HEA ushered in programs, particularly the Federal TRIO programs, necessary for postsecondary access, retention, and completion for low-income, potential first-generation college graduates.