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New Terrier-Run Podcast Aims to Be a Resource for First-Gen Latina Students
Vicky Plasencia (COM’23) created project with guidance from BU’s Newbury Center
Vicky Plasencia (COM’23), a public relations major and international student from Argentina, created the First-Gen Latina Podcast to help other first-generation college students navigate financial aid and other challenges of university life.
With the help of BU’s Newbury Center, a campus support service for first-generation college students like herself, Vicky Plasencia began her First-Gen Latina Podcast. From the College of Communications podcast recording studios, Plasencia addresses her listeners like a wise older sister who’s been through the tough stuff and wants to make sure they don’t have to.
Terriers in Charge: Brianna Bourne (CAS’24)
Brianna Bourne (CAS’24) grew up in Mattapan surrounded by Caribbean culture. Her neighborhood drew families originally from the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Jamaica, where her parents were born. So, when the psychology and classics double major arrived at BU, she went in search of a student club that celebrated Caribbean music, dance, and food.
Brianna Bourne (CAS’24), president of SOCA, Students of Caribbean Ancestry Club
Photo by Cydney Scott for Boston University Photography
What she discovered disappointed her. There had been a student club, SOCA (Students of Caribbean Ancestry), but it had become inactive during the COVID pandemic. Bourne tracked down two students who had been part of the club and they encouraged her to reactivate it and to reach out to the Student Activities Office (SAO) for guidance.
Terriers in Charge: Kathya Correa Almanza (CAS’25)
After Kathya Correa Almanza (CAS’25) was accepted to BU, her sister urged her to join clubs that would provide a sense of community. The San Francisco native, whose family is from Mexico, started researching student organizations and found Alianza Latina, BU’s largest Latinx student organization, on Instagram. When she arrived on campus, she immediately sought them out during Splash, the annual student club fair.
Kathya Correa Almanza (CAS’25) is the vice president of Alianza Latina.
Photo by Cydney Scott for Boston University Photography
“I was in search of people I could relate to and connect to,” says Correa Almanza, a first-gen student majoring in psychology and minoring in education. “The club gave me a place where I could be myself and meet kind, welcoming people from similar backgrounds, but where I could experience and learn about other Latinx cultures.”
COM Student among Inaugural Cohort of Obama Foundation Voyager Scholarship Winners
Katarina “Kat” Quach (COM’24) is one of 100 college students recognized for their commitment to public service
As a middle and high school student in Seattle, Wash., Katarina “Kat” Quach wanted to give students a voice, so she became active in student government. She also wanted to share her love of art, so she interned at the Seattle Art Museum, and after coming to BU, worked on a series of public art installations designed to promote learning and engagement in children. As a first-generation college student, Quach (COM’24) works at the Newbury Center, where she provides support and resources to other first-gen students.
Now, her commitment to public service has earned Quach a rare distinction: she has been named one of the inaugural recipients of the Obama Foundation’s Voyager Scholarship, also known as the Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service.
First-Gen Story from A Posse Scholar Teresa Miguel
“Being a first-generation means I have opportunities and experiences I’ve never had before, a newfound community for a lifetime, knowledge and understanding of systems, and access to new things. Being a first-generation means I’m bringing my knowledge back to my community, to my family, and moving forward with them.”
- Teresa Miguel, (Sargent '25)
To recognize First-Generation College Celebration Day, BU Today asked Posse scholar Teresa Miguel to share her story. She shares her journey from rural Georgia to urban Boston. Knowing that she got into Boston University, she felt “happy, proud, and guilty” at the same time. After meeting many first-gen students through several events, she became confident to introduce herself, “My name is Teresa Miguel, a first-generation and low-income student here at Boston University.”
Valerie’s Summer with The Providence Justice Fellowship
“The Providence Justice Fellowship through the BU Initiative on Cities (IOC) was a really informative experience that I am grateful to have had the opportunity to complete. As a junior pursuing law as my eventual career, this aspect of justice drew me in when I saw the fellowship posted.”
- Valerie Sanchez Covaleda (CAS/CGS ’24)
A first-generation student, Valerie, had an opportunity to participate in BU Initiative on Cities (IOC), particularly at the City of Providence Office of Sustainability. She developed several skills, specifically project management skills, and also improved her communication skills when contacting so many different people. This opportunity also led her to gain a lot of new knowledge about environmental issues, as well as about how justice and inequality tie into that.
5 Tips for First-gen College Students
"College is hard enough to navigate already, but especially as a first-gen student. Don’t worry, you’re not alone."
- Katarina Quach (COM’24)
Kat came to Boston University from Seattle, Washington, which means being at BU puts her quite a ways from home. As a junior in COM majoring in Public Relations and as an employee at Newbury Center on campus, she wrote 5 (five) important tips for first-generation college students.
Brianna Bourne’s Journey from Mattapan to Latin Academy to Comm Ave
“I’ve learned over time that asking for help is better than struggling by yourself.”
I was born in Dorchester and when I was about three or four we moved to Mattapan. I went to Boston Public Schools, and I went to Boston Latin Academy from 7th until 12th grade. My parents came here from Jamaica. They didn’t go to college. My mom works at a bank and my dad works at the post office. At Boston Latin Academy, the teachers would say, ‘Oh, yeah, once you get to college…’ It was never like, ‘Oh, if I go, it’s when I go.’
Brianna Bourne (CAS’24), from Boston, psychology major and Student Staff at the Newbury Center