Run by students for students, Rhody F1rst assists those who are the first in their families to pursue a degree
KINGSTON, R.I. – Nov. 17, 2025 – The newest Student Senate-recognized organization at the University of Rhode Island is exploring innovative ways and developing more resources to help one of the largest student populations on campus.
Rhody F1rst, a student-led group dedicated to supporting, empowering, and celebrating first-generation college students, is in its first semester this fall as a Senate-recognized student organization after operating in the spring of 2025 as an offshoot of the First-Year Experience program through the Fannon Institute for Student Success.
Having been fully recognized by Student Senate, Rhody F1rst is now an official student organization with a full executive board and more than 100 members. The group meets twice a month on Tuesdays and aims to provide a vibrant community where first-generation students – the first in their family to attend college – can connect, share experiences, and thrive together while offering mentorship opportunities that allow students to receive guidance from peers who understand their unique challenges and experiences.
“Their goal is just to support each other so that any first-gen student that wants to join can come on board and have access to whatever they need help with,” said URI First-Year Experience coordinator Lisa Giudici, the group’s advisor.
Though not a first-gen student herself, Giudici recognized the need for representation at URI while previously working as an advisor for the then University College for Academic Success (now the Fannon Institute). According to data, one in every three full-time, first-year URI students is first generation and three of every four transfer students are the first in their family to attend college. Likewise, 33 percent of students across the nation also identify as first generation.
“Coming into a first-year experience position, I wanted to know who our students are and what is the makeup of the University of Rhode Island,” said Giudici, who’s been with URI for 13 years. “In doing that, I learned that a third of the population is first generation, without a lot of support or representation across campus.”
Rhody F1rst is working to provide better access to resources and more learning opportunities for URI’s first-gen population. Led by club president Ashly Martinez Rodriguez, vice president Andzelika Cetera, treasurer Sharday Johnson, outreach and communications board member Shaily Quiroa Gamez, and secretary Noelia Marrocco, the group has hosted several activities and events from study sessions to resume workshops, led by URI career education specialist Brandon Sousa, and recently held its first industry panel, “Navigating Professional Roles Post-Graduation.” The panel discussion featured input from Dante Cady, the CEO of Kuduu Platforms and a senior engineer for Delta Dental; Cassandra Goryl, the Senior Director for Human Resources at Women and Infants Hospital; and Dr. Irine Chenwi, a mechanical engineer for the Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division in Newport and a URI alumna.
The students, Giudici said, are “steering the ship” as Rhody F1rst continues to expand and provide opportunities for fellow first-gen students that were not always available to them when they first arrived at URI.
“During my first few years, it was a little hard to find a support group for students like myself,” said Cetera, an accelerated bachelor’s to master’s student from Warwick, RI, majoring in kinesiology who is also a Resident Assistant for the University Gateway Apartments. “My parents are both immigrants, so they had no idea how to navigate the college experience, whether it was the application process or filling out the FAFSA, so I mostly relied on my sister because she came here before me.”
After seeing a flyer on campus advertising Rhody F1rst, Cetera felt compelled to join because it was “finally something I can relate to” and it would give her the opportunity to pay it forward for students having trouble navigating the same college experience she endured as a freshman.
“Especially me, as a senior, I’ve seen everything and experienced a lot of the things that college brings,” Cetera said. “The younger students don’t know how to navigate, for example, housing life, so for me, as an RA, I know a lot of the resources on campus, which helps me help the students in our club because a lot of them are freshmen, sophomores, and they don’t know how to access what’s available to them.”
“The opportunity to connect with students who are like me who are navigating college life on their own or who don’t have older siblings to like rely on or other people in their family is important,” said Marrocco, a North Kingstown, RI, native. “My first few weeks on campus were tough to navigate. I missed home a lot. Being immersed in campus life helps, and now our group is navigating and making its own way for our own legacies, not just for ourselves, but for our future families, so it’s important we’re here. I love being able to say, ‘I’ve been through that and here’s what to do.’”
Rhody F1rst is also planning a financial literacy workshop to teach students how to effectively manage their money and achieve financial stability. As a voice for first-generation students, the group will continue to collaborate with campus partners to ensure students have the support services in place to succeed academically and professionally. A long-term goal is to weave this work into the curriculum for first-generation students, like the standard URI 101 course that helps first-year and transfer students transition to college.
“We especially want to support initiatives during the orientation process, welcome and give recognition to our first-gens from the start, and then build off the experience, encouraging involvement with the student organization,” Giudici said. “I’m the biggest cheerleader in the world that I can be to them.”
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Michael Parente, director of communications and marketing in the URI Division of Student Affairs, wrote this news release.