First-gen panel shows students they are not alone

By Will Bradley

Throughout last week’s “First-Gen Week” hosted by the Office of Intercultural Affairs, a panel with Stonehill first-gen alumni was held to the public on Thursday night in May Hall. 

With panel speakers Ronnie Sar-Meas ‘21, Terrell Diggs, ‘13, and Vanda Barros-Lopez, ‘08, the panel brought together a set of unique experiences to share with the new collection of first-gen students.  

Those in attendance were encouraged to ask anything they wanted to learn. A major question that came up was “What obstacles did you face at Stonehill?” 

Terrell mentioned his transition from high school, where he graduated out of a small class of 75 students, and adjusting to the new environment.  

“It was actually funny too; Financial Aid had a photo of me in their office because of how much I visited them,” Diggs said. 

Barros-Lopez mentioned how she only had her father in the country, and he was supportive, she felt he didn’t know a lot when it came to navigating college. She grew up in Cape Verde, and only transitioned to the American schooling system around middle school which became challenging as she had to push herself all throughout school. 

Sar-Meas had an empowering story as well, coming from the position of being a teen mom balancing both her time at Stonehill and taking care of her then 4-year-old. As well as being a teen mom, Ronnie also talked about the challenges of commuting. 

“I commuted to school as well, and I didn’t have my license, which became even more challenging, my husband and best friend helped me a lot during this time,” Sar-Meas said. 

A major point of the panel was to show students they are not alone in navigating this school life. 

“No matter how you feel and how you might think, you will thrive,” said Gabby Silveira, the panel’s moderator.