abstract discussions of money, however lively they may be. So Ms. Guo
tries to keep things practical. With
the university’s Student Money
Management Center, she helps run
workshops on financial literacy;
some departments on campus have
made the curriculum part of their
freshman-orientation programs.
As a U/Fused affiliate, she has arranged campus screenings of a documentary on class consciousness in
health care, a popular area of study
at the university.
Even with different types of
events, Ms. Guo laments the same
challenge as her counterparts at
more elite institutions: Sometimes
it’s a struggle to get people to care.
Continued From Page A6
Efforts that started strong on
some campuses have waned. At
Smith College several years ago,
students formed the Smith Association of Class Activists. The group
published a guide of tips on, for example, how to make an unpaid internship work; it also produced a
documentary, Class Is Never Dismissed, about socioeconomic issues at the college. But participation in the group got sparser each
year, says Emily Huesman, who
graduated from Smith in 2012.
And conversations grew polarized,
she says.
When the core members gradu-
ated with her last year, the group
disbanded. Ms. Huesman, who
had been the first in her family to
go to college, was disappointed.
She recalls her first year, when
events designed as icebreakers
required at least some money. In
her house on campus, she says,
she was one of two students who
couldn’t afford to go out: “Not
even two or three dollars at an
ice-cream shop.”
Without the class activists, she
says, “I would have been complete-
ly miserable. It was the one space I
could go to and feel safe.”
THE VALUE OF TALK
At Virginia, students are just getting started. For now, they’re trying
to find a balance between talk and
action.
Katy Hutto, who began the group
with Ms. Berg, says her goal is for
students, faculty, and administrators to consider why certain stereotypes persist here. Honest conversation, says Ms. Hutto, who is majoring in English and political and
social thought, will go a long way to
make all students feel more comfortable.
Still, even the talkers can sometimes forget to really talk. A few
weeks ago, Ms. Hutto, Ms. Berg,
and the third organizer, Ashley Blackwell, sat down to discuss
forthcoming events and potential
partnerships for next year.
But Ms. Blackwell was uneasy.
She wants the group to get UVa to
bolster support for low-income stu-
dents, but she needs it as a personal
outlet, too. Class has shaped her life
completely, says Ms. Blackwell, who is
majoring in urban and environmen-
tal planning: Growing up, she moved
so much she doesn’t have a place she
calls home. She wants to keep sight of
the emotional role the group plays, in-
cluding for her.
‘Little Tricks’ Help Disadvantaged Students Plot Career Paths
By BECKIE SUPIANO
SOME STUDENTS start college with such savvy parents and strong connections that landing well after graduation is all but
guaranteed. For their less-advan-taged classmates, translating a new
degree into a solid career can be a
challenge.
Mary McLean Evans noticed
that disparity among young alumni of Hamilton College, where she
is assistant vice president and executive director of the career center. The difference was most acute,
she says, for students who hadn’t
plotted a course during college and
were scrambling for a job as graduation drew near.
Hamilton already supports
low-income students with need-
blind admissions and need-based
aid (the college eliminated merit
scholarships several years ago). But
there’s more to the college experi-
ence than paying the bill. Low-in-
come students may get in the door,
says Monica Inzer, dean of admis-
sion and financial aid. But, she
wonders, “can we ensure these stu-
dents have an equal experience,
too?”
To that end, Hamilton’s admis-
sions and career offices started a
pilot program in the fall: First Year
Forward. The admissions staff in-
vited freshmen to participate in the
voluntary program, selecting them
based on significant financial need,
as well as their potential. The pro-
cess gave preference to first-genera-
tion college students and those not
already supported by another orga-
nization.
TRANSFERABLE SKILLS
through options and will keep ad-
vising her even after she heads
home. “Although I’m in a rough
spot,” she says, “I don’t feel uncon-
fident.”
Ms. Parra’s parents are both
Mexican immigrants; her father
works in construction, and her
mother stays at home. Many of her
classmates, she knows, have the
advantage of “parents with con-
nections and other people who
can help them.” The skills she has
picked up in the program, Ms. Par-
ra says, help bridge that gap.
With any luck, the challenge
of finding an internship now will
leave Ms. Parra better equipped to
land a permanent job later. As Ms.
Evans explains it, the goal of First
Year Forward is “leveling the play-
ing field by engaging with students
early.”
That doesn’t mean they have to
decide on a career as freshmen. “We
don’t want them to all know what
they want to do now,” says Janine
Oliver, coordinator of First Year
Forward and assistant director
Low-income students
may get in the door,
but “can we ensure
these students have
an equal experience,
too?”
Jeanette Z. Parra is one of a
handful of participants still trying to find a summer opportunity. She is hoping to return home
to San Antonio, but the Hamilton
alumni network is smaller there,
and she isn’t back yet to interview
in person. So the program’s organizers are helping Ms. Parra think
JASON GrEENE FOr THE CHrONICLE
Milinda Ajawara (center right) and fellow students celebrate their first year at Hamilton College at a dinner for First Year Forward.
The program gives low-income students an early start in the career-planning process.
on a specific career. Ms. Ajawara,
the daughter of Nigerian immigrants who work as an EMT and
a nurse, started college planning
to become a doctor. But in conversations with Hamilton’s career
counselors, she realized she didn’t
want to go to medical school, and
is particularly interested in patient care.
So Ms. Ajawara started researching other health-care jobs and
found that of a nurse practitioner
particularly appealing. Through
First Year Forward, she had an
informational interview with an
alumna who works as a nurse practitioner in a women’s health clinic.
And this summer, Ms. Ajawara will
intern at a nonprofit dedicated to
preventing child abuse.
In addition to opening up a pos-
sible career path, the program has
taught her how to contact an em-
ployer she’s interested in and when
to follow up. “Little tricks,” Ms. Aja-
wara says, “not everyone in my class
year knows.”
Hamilton hopes to keep giving
students a similar edge. For next
fall’s incoming class, Ms. Inzer
and Ms. Evans are working to for-
malize First Year Forward. With
a background in development,
Ms. Evans has raised most of the
money needed to cover this year’s
stipends. In the future, she hopes
the program will be supported by
an endowment. Hamilton’s donors
already embrace its need-blind
commitment, so perhaps they will
want to promote this kind of par-
ity, too.
