Ouachita Stories

Finding opportunity in unfamiliar places: A first-generation student's journey

I considered myself to be an “average student” in high school. I wasn’t enrolled in gifted and talented courses, and college wasn’t highly spoken of within my immediate family. My mother received her GED and attended cosmetology school. As my brothers and I got older, she would tell us that she knew college wasn’t for everyone, but that she hoped we would go because she wanted us to have the experience that she missed out on for many years.