Wayne State College was selected as a member of the FirstGen Forward Network Class of 2026.
FirstGen Forward announced Wayne State College as a new member to the FirstGen Forward Network Class of 2026. To be selected as a FirstGen Forward Network member, Wayne State displayed a demonstrated commitment to improving experiences and advancing success for first-generation college students.
Forty-five percent of Wayne State students are first-generation.
“At Wayne State, we know attending college for the first time can be exciting, but it can also come with a lot of questions,” said Kevin Halle, vice president for enrollment management at Wayne State. “Nearly 50 percent of our students are the first in their families to attend college and supporting them isn't a special initiative for us; it's part of who we are. We want every student to feel they belong here, and our faculty and staff are here to support them.”
“Being part of the FirstGen Forward Network is an opportunity to recognize our current strengths, while learning how we can improve our support for students – from the moment they consider Wayne State through graduation,” added Halle.
The FirstGen Forward Network provides a three-phase approach – Network Member, Network Leader, and Network Champion – to scaling holistic first-generation student success by engaging and empowering higher education institutions to transform the first-generation student experience, advance academic and co-curricular outcomes, and build more inclusive institutional structures. With the new class, the Network includes more than 500 institutions of higher education, including two statewide systems, representing 48 states and the District of Columbia.
“We are excited to welcome Wayne State College to the FirstGen Forward Network,” said Martina A. Martin, vice president at FirstGen Forward. “Throughout the application process, Wayne State demonstrated a clear commitment to advancing success for first-generation students – backed by a willingness to align strategy, data, and campus-wide efforts for long-term impact. Their leadership reflects a meaningful investment in creating the conditions where first-generation students can thrive.”
In the first phase of the Network, selected institutions participated in the FirstGen Forward Network Virtual Kick-off on Aug. 20. As a Network Member, Wayne State’s interested faculty and staff were afforded opportunities to engage with peer institutions also working to create environments that improve the experiences and success of first-generation students, and will participate in monthly calls, professional development, goal setting, blog development, annual reporting, and more.
After successful completion of the Network Member phase, institutions may progress to the second phase, FirstGen Forward Network Leader, in which institutions receive an evidence-based and research-supported framework of actionable priorities supported through monthly workshops; diagnostic tools providing critical institutional insight; robust data-sharing as part of the national Postsecondary Data Partnership; guidance of expert coaches along each step of the experience; and more. Ultimately, all Network institutions strive for national leadership as FirstGen Forward Network Champions.
“There is nothing quite like seeing a new generation of institutions step into this network with purpose and passion," said Dr. Stephanie J. Bannister, president of FirstGen Forward. "FirstGen Forward exists because we believe institutions are strongest when they learn alongside one another – sharing evidence-based practices, working through challenges together, and advancing first-generation student success at scale. Wayne State College is joining a community of practitioners doing exactly that, and the Class of 2026 represents a remarkable groundswell of energy and commitment. I know Wayne State College will be a meaningful contributor to what we build together.”
About first-generation efforts at WSC About FirstGen Forward
About FirstGen Forward
FirstGen Forward is the center for first-generation student success – your premier source for evidence-based approaches, data-informed strategies, professional development, and research. Together, we are building community and belonging through the FirstGen Forward Network, knowledge creation and evidence-based practices, and thought leadership and advocacy, transforming higher education and the student success landscape guided by a first-gen lens.