First-Gen Supporters' Program

First-gen supporters are appointed to their role for one year, and may opt out of the program at anytime. 

As a supporter, we hope that you will regularly check in with your student, providing assistance as needed. We know you'll need some guidance to know all the resources available at RISD, and will provide you with useful information so you know how to best advise your student. 

Throughout the year, you can expect to hear from us regularly with campus resources, events, information about first-generation students, and common stressors for college students.

Some information you can expect to receive via email includes:

• Orientation information: Pre-arrival emails, Orientation tasks, and student to-do list reminders during the summer as your student prepares to start classes in September.
• Pre-arrival webinar recordings: During the spring and summer before FGC POP, we will hold webinars with key information for students as they prepare for their college experience.
• Bi-monthly updates: reminders about what is happening on campus and what stressors students are most likely to navigate at that time

For students

We want to share all that we can with your supporters so that they can best assist you. However, we will not be able to share specific information about your classes, grades, or other private information in compliance with FERPA.

For supporters

As we share with the students, we are happy to provide as much information as possible to help you support your student. Due to FERPA, we are unable to share information about students' classes, grades, or other private information. 

The term for a supporter is one academic year. After that year, we will delete your contact information from our files to protect your privacy. Names and email information for supporters are not shared, entered into any databases, or provided to other areas of campus. Supporter names and email information are only used for the First Generation Supporters’ Program. If you have other privacy-related concerns, please contact us.