Desireé LaFreniere: SC Teaching Fellow and First Generation College Student

In the fall of 2012, Desireé LaFreniere will become the first member of her family to attend college, as well as the recipient of the prestigious SC Teaching Fellows Scholarship. This fellowship is for high school seniors who have exhibited “high academic achievement, a history of service to their school and community, and a desire to teach in South Carolina.”

Desireé will be attending Winthrop University where she will study to become a high school history teacher. According to an article in USA Today, Desireé is part of 30% of entering freshman in the United States who are first generation college students.

Studies have shown that first generation college students graduate at lower rates than students who have parents that attended college. According to a report by the National Center for Education Statistics, 25% of first-generation students who enrolled in post-secondary education between 1992 and 2000 attained a bachelor's degree. In contrast, 68% of students whose parents had a bachelor's degree or higher finished their undergraduate education.

Through the Crossing the Bridge program, Bridges to a Brighter Future is working to ensure that program participants not only enroll in college, but have the skills and knowledge they need to graduate from college and beat the statistics. For more information about Crossing the Bridge, check out Lindsey’s post.

I have no doubt that Desireé will succeed in college and go on to be a dedicated teacher. While I was interviewing her, I was impressed by her positive outlook and determination.

Desireé currently lives alone while her mother migrates between states, earning money doing agricultural work, which she sends back to Desireé for rent and other expenses. While Desireé says that living alone has its challenges, it has helped her develop independence.


Desireé’s independence has helped her emerge as a leader in Bridges, where she served on the leadership team at the 2011 summer program. This is a group of five students selected by their peers who plan and lead the morning assembly, as well as serve as liaisons between their fellow students and the Bridges counselor team.

 The back of Desireé's jersey for the 2011 leadership retreat. Credit: Bridges to a Brighter Future

To hear more about Desireé’s awesome story, check out her video testimony about the impact Bridges has had in her life.