Cal State San Bernardino will join in the National First-Generation College Celebration, set for Tuesday, Nov. 8, by hosting its own event at noon that day in the Santos Manuel Student Union North Conference Center B.

Register online with your Coyote ID number.

Each year, on Nov. 8, colleges, universities, corporations, nonprofits, government offices and K-12 schools celebrate the success of first-generation college students, faculty, staff and alumni in any and every way possible.

The date for the National First-Generation College Celebration was picked to honor the anniversary of the signing of the Higher Education Act of 1965. The Higher Education Act (“HEA”) emerged out of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty.

Much like other hallmark legislation of that era, such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, HEA was intended to help level a playing field that for too long had been weighed against Americans from minority and low-income backgrounds. In addition to creating federal grants and loan programs to help students finance their educations, the legislation made key investments in institutions of higher education. Additionally, HEA ushered in programs, particularly the federal TRIO programs, necessary for postsecondary access, retention and completion for low-income, potential first-generation college graduates.

First generation is defined as:

  1. A student whose parent(s)/guardian(s) have not completed a four-year degree
  2. The first to attend a university
  3. A graduate or future graduate of a university

For more information on the National First-Generation College Celebration, visit the Center for First-Generation Student Success website.

First Generation celebration flier