Iowa Guides First-Gen Students on Path to Success

PHOTO: Gabriela Rivera High school students become familiar with the University of Iowa campus as part of the Tippie Gateway Summer Program.

Anibal Mares Marquez (20BBA) didn’t envision attending a four-year university. Immigrating from Mexico to Rock Valley, Iowa, in 2010 at age 13, he spoke little English and was steered toward community college by his high school counselors. In 2015, Mares Marquez initially dismissed an invitation from the University of Iowa Henry B. Tippie College of Business to attend its inaugural Tippie Gateway Summer Program, which offers rising high school seniors a free, weeklong immersion into college life. Participants meet professors, staff, business professionals, and fellow prospective students and learn about career opportunities in business.

Mares Marquez’s mother helped him reconsider, and he returned from the experience certain of his future. “I fell in love with the university—the campus and people in the program,” says Mares Marquez. “The faculty were excited to meet me and know my story. They were willing to sit with me after the sessions and answer my questions. That made it easy to get to a point where I could envision myself being a student there.”

Today, one in five UI undergraduates are first-generation college students—meaning a parent or legal guardian has not completed a four-year degree. The university assists these Hawkeyes by providing college prep resources, academic coaching, support networks, and financial aid and scholarships. The Tippie College of Business is a leader in these efforts, providing a path for students to excel before, during, and after their time at Iowa.

PHOTO COURTESY TIPPIE COLLEGE OF BUSINESS Former BizEdge mentor Rita Guzmán, who now serves on the Tippie Young Alumni Board and helps students as a senior enrollment advisor for All Campus in Chicago, poses with Gabriela Rivera, associate director of engagement and belonging at Tippie.

Gain an Edge

Mares Marquez experienced homesickness and doubted his abilities as a college student in fall 2016 during his first semester at Iowa. Gabriela Rivera (99MA), associate director of engagement and belonging at Tippie, introduced him to other first-generation minority students who had worked through those same challenges. The next semester, Rivera asked Mares Marquez and other Tippie student leaders to create the ideal peer mentoring program for underrepresented students in business.

Their input shaped BizEdge—the next step in Tippie’s method of supporting underrepresented students. Launched in fall 2017, the program empowers students to form connections, network, and access resources like academic support and scholarships. Freshmen are paired with mentors who help them transition to college life. Mares Marquez mentored for three years, paying forward the assistance he received.

“Having the validation from other people that you’re not the only one feeling this way helped a lot,” says Mares Marquez, an accounting graduate. “That pushed me toward making sure that any students who came after me would not feel the same way I did.”

PHOTO: AMANDA MAY Zahra Aalabdulrasul found a sense of belonging at Iowa through BizEdge.

A Place of Belonging

Zahra Aalabdulrasul (21BBA) struggled to find a sense of community growing up in Cedar Rapids as a Muslim of Iraqi and Dominican descent. She feared she’d face the same reality at Iowa. Her perspective changed in fall 2017, when she joined the inaugural cohort of BizEdge mentees.

“For the first time I felt like I belonged somewhere, and I was with people who had similar experiences to me,” says Aalabdulrasul, a daughter of immigrants who became a first-generation student. “When you have that foundation where you’re comfortable and feel like you belong—that’s where you can really start to thrive because you’re not second-guessing your place there anymore. You’re confident and growing.”

Aalabdulrasul became a BizEdge mentor and student program coordinator and served in other campus leadership positions. An advocate for inclusion efforts, Aalabdulrasul now serves as an executive assistant of global diversity, equity, and inclusion at Warner Music Group in New York.

“No matter what sphere you’re in, whether it’s school, work, or life, mentorship is really everything,” says Aalabdulrasul, who graduated with an entrepreneurial management degree. “I’m a firm believer that you can’t really get through life alone. It’s important to find people that you can rely on.”

PHOTO: BELLA VOLFSON Luz Alcala's positive experience with BizEdge and Tippie Gateway inspired her into a career mentoring students.

Discover Your Passion

Luz Alcala (22BBA) called on her support system early in her first semester at Iowa. After failing her first exam, the Villa Park, Illinois, native thought she wasn’t cut out for college and considered leaving. A conversation with her BizEdge mentor and others in the program helped her realize she wasn’t the only one to experience this. Finding community in BizEdge made it easier for Alcala to seek help, voice her struggles, and get involved in groups like the Multicultural Business Student Association.

“Sometimes people don’t understand that students of color or first-gen students feel like they have to work a lot harder—or they do have to work a lot harder—to get to where other people are,” says Alcala, a first-generation student whose parents immigrated from Mexico. “BizEdge introduced me to other students who were interested in seeing me succeed.”

Attaining a business administration and management degree, Alcala was inspired by her mentoring experiences in BizEdge and Tippie Gateway to help college students as an advisor. She supports UI student-athletes as a graduate assistant in Student-Athlete Academic Services and is on track to graduate this spring with a master’s degree in higher education and student affairs, so she can continue mentoring students as a career.

PHOTO: Justin Torner/UI OFFICE OF STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION The University of Iowa provides resources to help support first-generation students throughout their college career.

Pay It Forward

Mares Marquez’s Tippie journey has come full circle. He’s an information technology auditor for PricewaterhouseCoopers, a Big Four audit firm and Tippie Gateway sponsor that he interned with as a UI undergraduate. Mares Marquez remains involved with the college as a member of the Tippie Young Alumni Board, an opportunity for graduates to continue supporting students and the college.

“For someone who grew up in a different country and had a different outlook of what an education is really about, my time at Iowa was a surreal experience,” says Mares Marquez. “If I didn’t attend the Tippie Gateway Program, I would have been a much different, not as successful person.”