Starting college is an ambitious undertaking for anyone, but it can be especially intimidating for first-generation college students. But thanks to programs out of UNI’s Center for Urban Education (UNI-CUE), UNI students Brianna Nash and Audrey Dillavou have found success and connection during their first year on campus.

Dillavou, a first-year athletic training and rehabilitation studies major from Evansdale, participated in Classic Upward Bound, a college preparatory program housed in the UNI-CUE, throughout high school. Her experience inspired her to achieve things she never thought possible. A first-generation college student, Dillavou’s success in the program helped her believe she could succeed in college. During her senior year of high school, she was valedictorian of her Upward Bound class, which helped open her eyes to her own potential.

“I didn’t think that’s something I could ever do. It was validating for me,” she said. “It was like, ‘Oh, I’m actually putting effort into this and it’s paying off.’”

Like Dillavou, Nash gained the confidence to continue her education through her participation in Classic Upward Bound. Though the Waterloo native always knew she wanted to attend college, as a first-generation college student, she worried she wouldn’t be able to access the opportunities she needed to achieve her dreams. 

“Being in Upward Bound and being exposed to all these opportunities enriched me and allowed me to take in the idea of what [college] would be like and why it would be beneficial,” she said. “It really gave me the extra push to feel like I could do it.”

Nash, a first-year biology and psychology double major, plans to be a psychiatrist and hopes to be an example for people of color who may struggle to feel represented by mental health professionals. This passion for representation was fueled by her participation in Classic Upward Bound, which allowed her to meet mentors and role models she could look to for guidance. During a trip with Classic Upward Bound to DC, she met an alum of UNI’s Classic Upward Bound program and fellow Waterloo native.

“This is a person that I wouldn't have met. If I hadn't gone to DC, I wouldn't have known that they were someone that I can look to for support and for reference,” she said. “I think it's important to have those opportunities … it taught me how to network.”

Participants in Classic Upward Bound also make connections on campus at UNI, and both Nash and Dillavou credit these connections with helping ease the transition to college. Dillavou credited the Classic Upward Bound summer program, during which students live and attend classes on-campus for six weeks, with helping her make connections that have been especially valuable now that she’s a UNI student.

“I had a bunch of connections on UNI’s campus already because I had been there all summer,” she said. “Not knowing anyone at a new college — especially during COVID, where it’s hard to meet new people — is really scary, so knowing a couple of people from high school was good.”

One of the connections Dillavou made was with Nash. The two met during their first year in the summer program and have been friends ever since. In addition to hanging out during Classic Upward Bound activities, both also got involved with FIRST Robotics, where they competed in robotics competitions, which helped them gain skills while building their friendship.

“I'm a mover and a shaker. So I like to be places, doing things, going somewhere, doing something. FIRST robotics allowed me to hone in on that,” said Nash. “I have so many so many skills just from being there. And the friends that I've made from being there, I think that they're lifelong friends.”

Today, FIRST Robotics helps keep them connected — Dillavou is a mentor for the FIRST Robotics team she and Nash were a part of in high school, where she helps train and guide high school students currently on the team. Nash said sometimes she stops by team meetings to visit with Dillavou, something she said speaks to the community these programs are able to build.

“Everyone comes back because it's that impactful of a community,” she said.

Nash hopes the success and connections she’s found will serve as a positive example for her 8 siblings.

“In doing what I'm doing, I hope to show them that getting involved in doing the things that other people are telling you are boring  ... they pay off,” she said. “I think that that's really important, making sure that I'm doing what I need to do to set a positive example. That’s my ultimate goal.”

She also works part-time as an office assistant for Classic Upward Bound in the UNI-CUE, where she’s able to reconnect with the UNI-CUE staff who supported her, and be a source of inspiration to students in the position she was in just a short time ago.

“In pursuing this opportunity, I'm getting to work with people that I know, I'm getting to enrich the relationships that I have with them, and I'm also getting to give back,” she said. “I get to see things come full circle. I get to be involved with helping these students, I get to watch them graduate and see them come full circle.”