Chapter 1: First Yet Always Last: First-Generation Professionals of Color Experiences in Higher Education

Over the past decades, the landscape of higher education has evolved significantly in the way that access is created for students of color. Many universities and colleges have made (or are beginning to make) access an institutional priority to manifest a more diverse campus environment that is reflective of a variety of student populations from numerous backgrounds and social classes. Amongst such student populations are those who are the first in their families to pursue postsecondary education—known as firstgeneration students (FGS). According to Hertel, “approximately 27% of high school graduates in the United States [were] considered first-generation college students” (as cited in Owens, Lacey, Rawls, & Holbert-Quince, 2010, p. 292). While the persistence of first-generation students looks different in comparison to their non-first-generation peers, researchers and practitioners identified that persistence for FGS of color is also different when compared to their White non-first-generation counterparts. As a result, many universities and colleges re-examined the ways in which they support first-generation students, while also helping them persist toward the completion of their undergraduate degree. Yet, after first-generation students of color graduate and, for some, matriculate into graduate programs, their status persists while their narrative is lost.