The Boeing Company recently donated $100,000 to WSU programs supporting first-generation students.

Angie Klimko, First at WSU director, said Boeing has supported first-generation students in the past. Boeing partners with a WSU team-mentoring program for first-generation students and helps provide research and mentorship opportunities. 

“We’re very thankful that they are able to support our first-generation initiatives in a large capacity and continue to support those,” Klimko said.

The $100,000 will be used to expand services for first-generation students and will help the university better support them, she said. 

Out of the $100,000, $40,000 will go toward funding student-led conferences, including SHAPING, CASHE and V.I.B.E.S., Klimko said. First at WSU will receive $50,000. 

The rest of the money from the gift will go to the team-mentoring program along with other mentoring programs at WSU, she said. 

“That really gives us the ability to target that money toward initiatives that are going to increase the sense of belonging for our students,”’ Klimko said. 

First at WSU has been in place for a year and highlights first-generation students across the WSU system, as well as different faculty and staff supporting them, she said. 

“We want to be able to … empower the students to have a voice for themselves, to speak up, to ask questions and to be able to go out into the workforce and really be able to advocate for themselves,” she said. 

The announcement for the gift was made during this week’s celebration for first-generation students, Klimko said.

All six WSU campuses are hosting activities advocating for first-generation student success. Events are listed on the First at WSU website.

“This is where we are able to highlight … what it means to be first-generation at WSU,” Klimko said.