FirstGen Presidential Fellow Zoe Ragland-Haines ’25 spoke at the First Falcons Celebration Dinner and Panel.
“Little did I know that applying to Bentley would change my life forever,” Ragland-Haines told the audience, sharing her surprise when was accepted to Bentley and awarded a full scholarship up to the cost of attendance. “Moving to Boston [from Maryland] and immersing myself in Bentley’s incredible culture has been the best rollercoaster I have ever experienced. I have had the opportunity to attend the GlobalMindED conference in Denver, Colorado, with other students and staff involved in the FirstGen Presidential Fellows, which helped me land an incredible internship this past summer living and working in Washington, DC. I have made amazing friends, have made amazing memories — but most of all, I have been given incredible opportunities such as being able to speak in front of you all today.”
Ragland-Haines is a nonprofit committee member and a lead program manager for the Bentley Service-Learning and Civic Engagement Center, vice president of the FirstGen Presidential Fellows program, Peer2Peer mentor, student health leader, Bentley Cheerleading Team recruitment chair and ambassador for the MOSAIC Experience, a pre-orientation program for first-year students of color and their allies.
Kevin Aprea Cabrera ’26, Rosa Chhay ’26 and Mama Darboe ’26 served on the First Falcons Week planning committee with Mercado. Mikela Cooper ’26, Daelle Guirand ’25 and Evan Murray ’26 supported the creative writing workshop and Puppy, Paint and Pizza session.
“I joined the committee to sharpen my leadership skills and because I’ve learned to appreciate the work that Bentley does for its first-gen students and I wanted to be a part of that,” says Darboe, who is a Management major and serves as secretary for Bentley’s Black United Body and as a Peer2Peer mentor and team leader. “To be included in this process means that I am a voice for the other first-gen students on campus.”
Chhay — an Economics-Finance major with a minor in Management, resident assistant for HerStory defined community and mentor for the Women’s Leadership Program and Peer2Peer program — says, “Being a part of the planning committee meant that my hands-on experience would reach and make an impact on students like me. First Falcons week and other programs for first-gen students not only give them the opportunity to grow outside the classroom, but also bring students together, fostering a community. Building this community is essential for first-gen students and allies to learn from one another, lean on one another and teach one another.”
First Falcons Week complements other Bentley first-generation student success initiatives such as the First Falcons pinning ceremony, First Falcons cording ceremony for graduating seniors, FirstGen Presidential Fellows leadership program, a campus chapter of Tri Alpha — a national first-generation Honor Society — and the First-Gen Student Support Committee, whose mission is to build on first-generation students’ existing strengths and help them leverage the power of a Bentley education to transform their lives.
“First-gen students have had many struggles throughout their journey to college and that should be recognized and assisted with,” says Cabrera, a Corporate Finance and Accounting major with a minor in Management. He is treasurer assistant for Black United Body, events coordinator for the National Association of Black Accountants Bentley student chapter, a Resident Assistant, Peer2Peer mentor and an intern and ambassador for the Multicultural Center. “This week was to help show students that we are here to support them in any way we can. The goal is to build a community and help first-gen students feel proud of their achievements.”
