My Encounter with a First Gen, Fourth-Generation Arizonan

During my presidential transition, I met a first-generation college student who, upon introducing himself, proudly stated he was a fourth generation Arizonan from one of our state’s resilient rural communities.?

I was unsurprised by the pride Arizonans take in their relation to place but was struck by the fact that it had taken four generations for his family to send one of its members to college.

I went on to learn that others before him had wanted to go to college but, for many reasons did not.?Reasons that included being place-bound to take care of family obligations; time-bound to accommodate the need to work to make ends meet; and the uncertainty that comes from being the first one in your family to dare to pursue higher education.

Unfortunately, for this proud Arizonan family, talent, hard work, and dreams had not previously been met with the corresponding opportunity to benefit from the value of a postsecondary education.

This is unacceptable.

And so, as we in higher ed seek to advance our missions, we must acknowledge that for students and communities to reach higher, we must create the conditions that will fully develop their “confidence to aspire” and provide them the information, tools, skills, and supports they need to realize their dreams.

Through our efforts, we will ensure that talent — regardless of the form it takes or the forces that have shaped it — is met with true, real opportunity to fully develop, for the benefit of the individual in question and for the communities they represent.

This is the promise of equitable postsecondary value — and it is time that we fully deliver for today's generation.

Adapted from "The Confidence to Aspire, The Determination to Elevate," Dr. Cruz Rivera's investiture speech as the 17th president of Northern Arizona University, September 30, 2022.