First in My Family Program

Carroll Supports Success!

First in My Family is a scholarship program designed to support first-generation students at Carroll Community College.* 

Being the first in your family to go to college is both exciting and challenging.

As a student at Carroll, you will be able to take advantage of all the opportunities that college has to offer. As one of the first in your family to go to college, you possess strengths that will serve you well as a college student including enthusiasm, self-control, curiosity, perseverance/grit, optimism, gratitude and social intelligence. This program will help you tap into those strengths while also providing you with information and resources on how to navigate college.

Don’t worry! We’re here to guide you every step of the way toward your educational goals, from advising you on financial aid and what classes to take for a seamless transfer, to coaching you on how to achieve an effective work/school/life balance and how to start a career that best suits your interests

*To be eligible for the First in My Family program, neither parent or guardian can have graduated with an Associate or Bachelor’s degree. Students must also be high school or GED graduates and enroll in credit classes.

Participation in the First in My Family program will help you:

• Connect to campus resources
• Adapt to Carroll Community College
• Receive practical advice, encouragement, and support
• Recognize your abilities
• Open a variety of opportunities such as membership to Tri-Alpha honor society
• Learn from the experience of first-gen staff and faculty 
• Live your dreams

Program requirements for participants include:

• Attending a virtual FIMF orientation session, Date/Time: TBD
• Attending 4-5 programs once a month throughout the semester which will take place on Fridays from 9am to 10am. These programs are designed to give students tools for success and allow them to engage with other first-generation students, faculty, and staff. 
• Participate in monthly check ins with assigned faculty/staff mentor.
• Attending biweekly 2pm Thursday Coaching Sessions.

Next Steps:

After registering for classes, students interested in joining the First in My Program must complete a First in My Family application. The fall deadline for admission to the program is August 7. The spring deadline for admission to the program is January 2. After the deadline applications will be reviewed and students will be notified of their status.

As the first in my family to attend college, I am doing something my parents were not able to do. But it was also a lot of pressure, because I didn’t really have that model to go to someone and ask, ‘How do I figure this out?’ But Carroll’s First in My Family program has been able to really help me with that. They have such a support team behind you to make sure you’re succeeding.

I’m the first one in my family to go to college. Here at Carroll, the staff helped me figure out what I need, what direction I have to go in, what classes I have to take. I’ve had a pretty big networking and support system through the First in the Family program, as well as a scholarship through them. It was a lot having to transition here, but Carroll made it really easy.