Black First-Gen Experiences

This book focuses on graduate school and, man, it took me back and not in a good way. Has anyone else written with such perception what it feels like to be a first-gen student of color in a doctoral program? Taylor gets it JUST RIGHT. The dinner parties, the constant talk about work, the out of touch advisors. And look, I got my degree in the humanities where they have a greater sense of humor. Can't imagine being in the sciences. If anyone is looking for resources about this particular experience, they should start here.

The late Echo Brown uses magical realism to describe her first year at Dartmouth University, where she confronts racism, self-doubt, and mental health concerns. An underrated talent.

Another CATALYST Awards nominee. This book is set in 1950s Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. and brings together the lives of two high achieving young Black women--one of them a Howard University student--who fight against classism, colorism, and sexism.

This biography of Robert Peace is written by one of his roommates at Yale University. Peace (African American) was raised by a single mother and grew up in Newark, New Jersey. He earned a full scholarship to Yale, where he studied molecular biochemistry and biophysics. Robert thrived at college but kept his home life separate. Hobbs (white) comes to learn that his roommate is a marijuana dealer on campus and also sells back in his home neighborhood. After graduation, Peace teaches at a Catholic high school and is murdered at age 30. Also see the film Rob Peace.

Career expert and influencer Minda Harts, a first-generation graduate, offers professional advice specifically for women of color in professional fields. Harts shares advice and strategies that she wishes she had received when she was furthering her own career. Also read Hart's other books, along with Elaine Welteroth.

A modern re-telling of Austen's Pride and Prejudice featuring an Afro-Latinx protagonist. This YA novel addresses teen romance, class conflict, and gentrification.

This book addresses racial profiling, “class passing,” and interracial conflict. It focuses on the tense relationship between a Black first-generation graduate in need of steady employment and her upper middle-class white employer who also comes from a working-class background. 2020 CATALYST Award nominee for Best Fiction.

A contemporary novel set at a fictitious Ivy-league institution. Focuses on the first year of Savannah Howard who experiences campus racism. CATALYST Award nominee for best YA novel.

This is the origin story of Simmons, who is a former president of Smith College, Brown University, and Prairie View A&M University, Texas’s oldest HBCU, and the former vice provost of Princeton University.