On November 8, Wellesley hosts the 13th annual First Gen Summit, a student-led conference that gathers students and speakers from across the country to celebrate first-generation identity and share their experiences. As Wellesley prepares for the event, students who are the first in their families to attend college reflect on their experiences, on campus and beyond.
“Being a first-generation student at Wellesley means realizing that I’m part of a large community that is bigger than me,” says Sinmiloluwa Akande ’27, a neuroscience major from Nigeria who serves on the summit’s Student Planning Committee. “There’s so much support here, which is something I’m really grateful for.”
That support begins the moment students set foot on Wellesley’s campus. Akande participated in the College’s signature WellesleyPlus program, an initiative run by the Office of Student Success that introduces first-year students to campus resources and connects them with fellow first-gen students. Akande recalls that even though she was “very scared” about what to expect during her first year, WellesleyPlus helped her recognize other first-gen students and made the transition “much less intimidating.”
Paloma Ayala ’26, a psychology major from Houston, found her own anchor in the Beal Scholars program (in addition to WellesleyPlus), which eases the academic and financial transitions to college life. Established in July 2021 at Wellesley, the program supports a cohort of 20 scholars in the classes of 2026 through 2029 who embody the commitment of Ilene Beal ’67 to “hard work, service, graciousness, and an abiding care for others.” They participated in six months of virtual programming to prepare them for their first-year orientation and solidify their support network as they joined the Wellesley community. “The Beal group really helped me settle in, not only providing me with community, but also a computer, which I’d never owned before,” Ayala says. She also met some of her closest friends and mentors, including Jamie D. Motley, the Anne Shen Chao ’74 Director of the Office of Student Success, who gave her advice and opportunities she never expected.
Being a first-generation student at Wellesley means realizing that I’m part of a large community that is bigger than me.
Motley says the College’s approach is centered on the development of the whole student—academically, personally, and emotionally. Her office’s role, she says, is to help students on their journeys of self-discovery and meet them at every point to help them build the confidence and community they need to thrive. “I’m extremely proud that Wellesley has been designated a First-Gen Forward institution,” says Motley, referring to the national honor bestowed on Wellesley in March 2021 by FirstGen Forward (formerly the Center for First-generation Student Success). “It’s because of the collective work being done across campus, not just in one office.”
The office collaborates closely with many different campus partners, in addition to the First-Gen Advisory Committee, made up of dedicated faculty and staff, and the student-run First-Gen Student Advisory Council. Together, they make sure that programming helps students look back and “feel awe at how far they’ve come,” Motley says.
QiQi Li ’27, a data science major and QuestBridge Scholar from Brooklyn, N.Y., says connecting early with the people she met in the WellesleyPlus program became the foundation of her experience at Wellesley. Through the program and a spring first-gen retreat as a first-year, she formed lasting friendships. Now chair of the First-Gen Student Advisory Council, Li has become a mentor herself, working to make the network that once welcomed her even stronger.
“I think a lot of first-gen students don’t know where to reach out for resources or how to use them,” Li says. “I always tell new students: Be proactive. Talk to your class dean, Dr. Motley, upperclass [students]. People here genuinely want to help.”
When someone shares their struggles, it helps others feel seen.
A primary goal of the summit is to connect first-gen students with those kinds of resources—and with each other. This is the second time Wellesley has hosted the annual event, which this year coincides with the College’s 150th anniversary, and Akande says she is eager to see how it unfolds: “There’s something for everyone—sessions about finances, networking, and much more. But the biggest thing is that this time, other campuses are coming to us. It’s a chance for Wellesley to be in the hub.”
For Ayala, who attended last year’s summit, the heart of the event lies in the stories themselves. “Usually, events focus a lot on financial circumstances, which is important, but I want to see more personal stories,” she says. “When someone shares their struggles, it helps others feel seen.” Li, who will speak at a panel about mentorship, hopes the summit expands how students view support. “A mentor doesn’t have to be one specific person,” she says. “Mentorship can come from anywhere.”
A similar current runs through each student’s story: that the feeling of belonging must be patiently built through long-term connection. Getting involved with student organizations and clubs has been an integral component of many first-generation students’ experiences. Whether performing with Awaken the Dawn, joining the Wellesley African Students Association (WASA), or volunteering with Hear Song, each student has found ways to grow into themselves and into one another. “You just have to go through challenges and realize you have great potential within you,” Akande says. “You’re capable of doing really hard things.”
Asked to describe the first-gen experience in one word, their answers—“bloom,” “hustle,” “resilience”—offer an image of growth and, crucially, a unified sense of determination. “I think that’s what being first-gen at Wellesley means,” Li says. “Knowing that you can overcome obstacles, and that you don’t have to do it alone.”