JoAnn Lee

The population of first-generation (FGEN) students in higher education is growing rapidly. While prior research often centers on perceived deficits within this group, recent research has begun to shift the narrative by focusing on the unique strengths and diverse experiences these students bring to the academic environment. Transformative leadership, a framework introduced by Carolyn Shields, emphasizes challenging inequitable practices and structures in ways that foster individual or collective transformation. This explanatory sequential mixed-methods study utilizes that framework to explore both the perceptions of and the impact of transformative leadership for FGEN students, particularly in terms of fostering positive relationships, enhancing support networks, increasing persistence, and strengthening their sense of belonging. The findings connect to both institutional and programmatic recommendations as well as explicit pedagogies for faculty and college classrooms. We seek to offer practical recommendations for integrating these strategies both inside and outside the classroom to better support FGEN students’ leadership development.