Mission and Values

Our Mission and Values 

First at WSU is an initiative to provide support and resources to first-gen Cougs on all WSU campuses. The First Gen Student Center is an affinity center where students on the Pullman campus can find community, support, and belonging.

These initiatives and spaces are new, and the mission and values are evolving. We are working to define these key elements and will update this page as soon as possible; while we conduct that important work, we would like to share some of our guiding principles: 

1. First-gen students belong at WSU. 

First-gen students can feel like they don’t belong on campus because of the systemic and structural barriers they face. First at WSU and the First Gen Student Center work to let first-gen students to know that they belong at WSU, we want them at WSU, and they can succeed at WSU.  

2. Supporting first-gen students helps us fulfill our land-grant mission. 

By supporting first-gen students through their WSU journey, we center our values and serve the broader purpose of our land-grant mission: to be a university for all Washingtonians. 

3. We support each individual’s lived experience.  

We know that first-gen students come to WSU from a variety of backgrounds and circumstances. We respect each individual’s journey and needs, and we support them in whatever they choose to pursue while they’re here. 

4. First at WSU and the First Gen Student Center help students navigate their WSU experience in a holistic way. 

We seek to be a “one-stop shop” for students – a place they can go to find community, guidance, inspiration, resources, and support. We want students to come to First at WSU and the First Gen Student Center with whatever they’re experiencing and know that they will be connected with the support they need. 

The First at WSU Approach 

First at WSU takes a holistic approach to first-gen student support and success. We know that most students often don’t know what they don’t know, and we are here as a hub of knowledge and resources they can use to navigate their WSU experience. 

Our support is centered on acknowledging the unique obstacles first-gen students may experience in college: 

• Limited access to information about the college experience, either firsthand or from relatives 
• Lack of knowledge about time management, college finances, budgeting, and/or the bureaucratic operations of higher education 
• Absence of support from, or a cultural conflict between, their home and college communities 
• Doubts about their academic abilities and the perception that they are “not college material”  
• Struggle to maintain a balance between school, family, and work responsibilities 
• Isolation, with limited support from parents, university faculty and staff, and peers 

First at WSU helps students address and remove those obstacles by providing:  

• Knowledge of university departments, systems, and processes 
• Access and connections to faculty, staff, and alumni 
• Engagement and community with first-gen Cougs 
• Expertise and guidance on a variety of topics, from financial aid to mentoring 

• Expanded experiences and perspectives through programs like First Gen Abroad 
• Resources and networks to help navigate life at WSU and after graduation 
• Strengths and skills development through meaningful programming and connections to key resources 

This support empowers first-gen students to confidently navigate their WSU experience, eliminate barriers where they find them, and build a solid foundation for life after WSU.