​Welcoming 1G the right way

In February, we wrote about the need to “address the student experience on campus” with respect to socioeconomic diversity, and two months later, we discussed normalizing the experience of first generation college students at Duke. Peer institutions like Harvard and Columbia have instituted programs to help students disadvantaged in different ways to adjust to college beyond financial aid packages and have seen their population diversity flourish with more 1G students. Duke is not far behind with one in ten students coming from first generation college backgrounds compared to Columbia and Harvard’s 14 and 15 percent, respectively. Soon however, that may change. At the beginning of this month, the University announced its new Washington Duke Scholars Program that will provide “a financial, academic and cultural foundation” to 1G students, about 30 to begin with plans to double that figure.

In addition to receiving grant financial aid, a laptop computer and additional benefits, the program will provide a long-term education and support network for these students. Among the challenges faced by first generation students is fitting into a body of students that is considerably more comfortable with the ideas of networking and navigating the many intricacies of college life. The Washington Duke program alleviates some of that struggle by immersing students in a sustained community. Before the school year begins, new scholars have the chance to participate in a four-week summer bridge program, allowing them to form relationships while acclimating more deliberately to life on a college campus.

The summer program’s one-credit seminar tackles a second problem of coursework. As Dean Steve Nowicki puts it, any students who come from a “less-resourced high school may not have taken advanced placement classes” that many others have. The summer seminar to prepare scholars specifically for the rigor of classes at Duke and the academic advisors who will be trained to advise low-income 1G students will go a long way for these students. These solutions are especially important given that many families are unsure of how to support their children because they have few or no similar experiences to rely on.

At its core, the Washington Duke Scholars initiative should be lauded for moving away from a small first-year inoculation that is supposed to get the ball rolling. The program’s biggest shift is towards a sustained approach to supporting and bolstering the success of its students with each generation of scholars becoming peer advisors for later years. Also seminar, summer internship and faculty and alumni networking opportunities are scheduled throughout scholars’ four years.

In September, we wrote about Duke needing to do more for to increase the diversity of the student body despite the endowment’s constraints, and in terms of attracting a more diverse body of applicants, we hope the Washington Duke Scholars Program will continue to exceed our expectations. We also are certain it will serve as a model for universities looking to create all-encompassing programs for their own first generation students.

Many first generation students do not consider applying to Duke because they feel the campus is exclusive and the cost of the education will be prohibitive. Admissions will surely use this program as a selling point for future prospective students. The general student body will need to take seriously its responsibility to make sure that our campus is inviting and inclusive to first-generation students who have likely had remarkable different experiences than those of the average student. Normalizing their experience as students is arguably even more important than providing resources from Duke to ease the transition. It will take time for Duke to see a marked change in the number of first generation students it attracts, but with the Washington Duke Scholars Program, we are well on our way to positive change.