Nov. 5 2025 | Isaac Garcia | Sports Editor

This week is National First-Generation Week, meant to celebrate the accomplishments of students who did not have a parent graduate from a four-year institution. First-Gen Week is a celebration of the Higher Education Act that was signed into law Nov. 8, 1965, by President Lyndon B. Johnson. Fun fact — the act was introduced in the House by Edith Green, who grew up in Salem and represented Oregon’s 3rd Congressional District. The Senate version of the bill also has ties to Oregon by way of Oregon senator Wayne Morse introducing it. The act aimed “to strengthen the educational resources of our colleges and universities and to provide financial assistance for students in post-secondary and higher education,” establishing the Pell Grant and helping to fund first-gen support programs like TRIO, which has been shown to be successful in increasing student retention and is available at Western. 

Western’s student population is roughly 50% first gen. This past summer, the university became a member of the FirstGen Forward Network, a program for universities showing commitment towards first-generation students fostering collaboration between the member universities in how to best support first-gen students. Specific outreach for first-generation students is important because studies show that these students often graduate at lower rates than their non-first-gen peers, due to feelings of isolation, lack of belonging and a multitude of other factors. However, the gap is smaller once first-gen students have programs that they can attend and feel seen and heard. 

When it comes to first-gen student athletes, the community they often enjoy as a part of their teams bodes well for retention, but this does not mean that there aren’t still challenges, especially at smaller schools. Starting college is a heavy adjustment period for all students and for athletes, who have to balance the changes along with significant time commitments to their sport. It can be difficult, especially with the previously mentioned challenges that arise with being first-gen. According to a January 2024 journal article from Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics written by Adam R. Cocco from the University of Louisville and Alan Grosbach from the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, there is a correlation between financial aid offered and student retention rate. While the journal is mainly focused on NAIA programs, one could see how this might put NCAA Division II and Division III schools at a disadvantage in retaining athletes, especially among first-gen students. Per NCAA regulations, Division II universities are only allowed to give partial athletic scholarships, and in Division III, there are no athletic scholarships, as opposed to Division I where full athletic scholarships are given out. The journal reports that for every 10% decrease in cost of attendance, there was a 9% increase in student retention among first-gen college athletes at the NAIA level.

So how do colleges around the country help support and celebrate first-gen students and athletes? One example is the University of Texas San Antonio, which, starting this season, began putting first-gen patches on the uniforms of players who are first-generation college students. As mentioned earlier, Western has been among the best in the nation at supporting first-generation college students with programs like the Student Enrichment Program, Teacher Preparation Student Support Services, Multicultural Student Services and Programs and TRIO. The school also recently added the Student Success Center to campus, which includes a space for first-generation students. 

There have been many great athletes who were first-generation students themselves. The most famous, perhaps, is Michael Jordan, who was a first-generation student athlete at the University of North Carolina from 1981-84 before being drafted third overall to the Chicago Bulls in 1984, going on to become one of the most well-known athletes ever. His teammate Scottie Pippen was at the University of Central Arkansas, an NAIA school, from 1983-87. He started his career without any sort of athletic scholarship, joining the university as a walk-on and equipment manager before emerging as a star on the team after space opened up. In the popular Netflix series released in 2020 about the Chicago Bulls dynasty of the 90s — titled “The Last Dance” — Pippen spoke about how players with scholarships at Central Arkansas lost them due to academic issues and how he was adamant with his coaches about becoming a scholarship player. After receiving a scholarship, Pippen would go on to earn NAIA All-American Honors twice, making a name for himself among NBA general managers. In 1987, he was selected fifth overall in the NBA draft by the Seattle SuperSonics, who then traded him to the Chicago Bulls, where he won six NBA Finals trophies with the team alongside Michael Jordan. Pippen would also go on to become a member of the 1992 USA Olympic “Dream Team,” considered by many to be the greatest semblance of talent in the history of basketball with Pippen and Jordan combining with the likes of Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Clyde Drexler and many other legends, rolling to an Olympic gold medal with their closest game still being a 32 point win against Croatia. 

In 2016, NFL receiver Randall Cobb became the first in his family to graduate from college, going back to school during his NFL career, where he was a Pro Bowler and one of the favorite receiver targets for future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers. In the days leading up to his commencement, Cobb said, “I think that achievement is going to be bigger than any success I could have on the field because on that day I will have set a standard for my family and anyone that comes after me.”  

The stories of Jordan, Pippen and Cobb serve as encouragement and reminders for any current or future first-generation college students that they belong and can rise to the pinnacle of success, whether that be in sports or another profession. For more information on how to be supported as a first-generation student at Western, go to wou.edu/firstgen and make sure to stop by some of the many events being held for First-Gen Week by TRIO. To find the event schedule and receive more details about the events, check out the First-Gen Week article from last week’s issue by News Editor Abbi Duhart or go to @woutpsss on Instagram to find daily schedules of the events for the remainder of the week.

Contact the author at howlsports@mail.wou.edu