First-gen students, families, find camaraderie at Cornell | Cornell Chronicle

""Not many people from my neighborhood or community go to these sorts of schools," said Bhadra, a global development major in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. "I was afraid that I would be initially alone, and there would be no one like me, no one who shared my previous experiences growing up." But that changed, after Bhadra participated in First at Cornell an all-expenses paid pre-orientation program that aims to ease the transition to college for first-generation students and their families."

"By the evening that he had arrived on campus, Bhadra was making his first s'more at a campfire alongside new friends under a sky full of stars. He'd never seen stars so clearly from his home in the Bronx. "Even though we only spent a couple of days together, it feels like these people are my family now," Bhadra said."

First at Cornell provides an all-expenses-paid pre-orientation experience that brings first-generation students and their families to campus and a nearby resort to ease the transition to college. Forty students attended Aug. 14–17, with family sessions on Aug. 16–17, combining campus programming and activities to foster relationships. The program creates peer connections and a sense of belonging through shared experiences, reducing feelings of isolation for students from underrepresented communities. Eighteen percent of the class of 2029 identify as first-generation, and the program is run by the First Generation and Low-Income Student Support (FGLI) office.

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