The FGLI Podcast

Drs. Anitra Persaud and Shannon Shipley, who are residents at Penn Medicine and the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, respectively, share their journey into medicine as first-gen, low-income. Join us for an insightful conversation about how they found their way, built a close-knit community for FGLI students at Penn, and offer heartfelt advice on pursuing medicine authentically as the first...

What role do FGLI student leaders play at elite institutions—and how can colleges better support them? In this episode, Peter and Lin discuss these questions and more with Dr. Ileana Casellas-Katz, who is the Director for Diversity and Inclusion at NYU School of Law. Dr. Casellas-Katz shares insights from her research on how FGLI leaders bring nuance to the predominant college culture, and create...

In this episode, Peter has a candid conversation with Reem Azar about the pivot points in her career path, departing from her initial aspirations to be a neurologist to discover her passion in bioengineering. Working in Dr. Michelle Johnson’s Rehabilitation Robotics Lab, Reem explains her decision to return to academia and pursue a PhD, studying the way robotics can interface with neuroscience to...

In this episode, Joanne and Khaliun sit down with Dr. Marc Lo, the inaugural Executive Director of Penn First Plus, to discuss the future of first-generation and limited-income (FGLI) programs at Penn and beyond. Drawing from his personal experiences as a FGLI student during undergraduate and graduate school, Marc shares his understanding of challenges such as imposter syndrome, family pressures,...

On this episode, we chat with Alaric Qin, who is a Penn alumni currently working in tech but has a passion for music and community building. Emily sits down with him to discuss the importance of maintaining a zest for life and exploring the nuances of being first generation low income and taking care of loved ones while bettering your own life.  Guest: Alaric Qin (Penn M&T’15) Alaric grew up i...

In this episode, Peter sits down with Dr. Michelle J. Johnson to explore her engineering journey, highlighting the various fields that sparked her interest before finding her true passion at the intersection of rehabilitation and robotics. Dr. Johnson shares insightful reflections on the key resources that guided her along the way, emphasizing the vital role that mentors, sponsors, and collaborato...

In this episode, we sit down with Richard Patti, a PhD candidate in Sociology and Demography at UPenn. From reflecting on moving out of upstate New York to mustering the courage to go to office hours, we uncover the small details and moments that made us realize we were first-generation low-income. We also discuss large sociological patterns that have an influence on one’s life trajectory.  Guest:...

In this episode, we go full circle as we look at the beginnings and end of the QuestBridge journey with two incoming Penn freshmen, Ashley and Stephania, and a graduating senior, Sierra, all of whom matched to Penn. Starting off, our guests discuss the QuestBridge application process, reflect on how it felt when they got matched, and provide some advice for prospective applicants. They also touch...

In this episode, Khaliun, Emily, and Peter reflect on their experience applying to college and provide advice on planning your apps. Our main takeaway was figuring out how to paint an authentic and multifaceted picture of our experiences to show what makes us unique as FGLI students. Wondering what’s on the application or how to write your essays? What should you do right now as a sophomore or fre...

Hello everyone! Today, we’ll be sitting down with three of our newest freshman members of the team, Nicolle, Vidhi, and Joanne. We begin by chatting about their initial impressions of Penn from this first semester, and then transition to a conversation about imposter syndrome. Afterwards, we’ll go into conversations about fate and explore how it helps us contextualize and reflect on our FGLI journ...

In this episode, Emily and Joanne sit down with Enne Kim, a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences studying English and International Relations. This episode focuses on being pre-law at Penn as a FGLI student as well as navigating how to fit your personal interests and career aspirations in your life, especially as job security and money can be FGLI priorities.  Guest: Enne Kim Contact: enneki...

In this episode, we sit down with Areli Martinez Pizano, who is a recent graduate from the Penn Graduate School of Education and works as a program assistant at the Greenfield Intercultural Center. We begin with Areli sharing her experience applying to college and figuring out what she wanted to major in. We discuss the challenge of majoring in something that you’re interested in versus something...

In this episode, Peter and Will chat with Cesar Lainez, a Penn graduate from the Class of 2024. Cesar graduated from the Wharton School, focusing on areas of business analytics and marketing & operations management. This episode focuses on navigating living off campus, budgeting, and  balancing social life and money. We also talk about learning how to network and face rejection when applying t...

In this episode, we sit down with Sarahi Franco-Morales, Hannah Srey, and James Tran to reflect on their freshman years. From the fast pace of classes at Penn to the competitive nature of clubs, we put down our Penn Faces and open up about what FGLI students struggle the most with freshman year. We then focus on the community that helped support them, and the family that’s watching from home.  Gue...

In this episode, we discuss the unspoken FGLI experience with Isabella “Izzy” Boudnik, an academic counselor at the Penn College Achievement Program (PennCAP). While many FGLI students see attending college as the “end game,” simply being in college or graduating with a degree will not erase all of their struggles. Whether it be strained relationships with their home community or cautiously naviga...

In this episode, we have a nuanced discussion about imposter syndrome with Dr. Dustin Brisson, who is a biology professor and the director of the biology master’s program at Penn. The feeling of not belonging or being “as far” as others plagues all of us, whether we are undergrads, grad students, or are well into our career. Dr. Brisson walks us through his own experience navigating college and po...

In this episode, we talk with Dr. Robert Ghrist about dealing with mental health issues, imposter syndrome as well as balancing your parents' dreams and your own. Dr. Ghrist talks about his experiences of moving to different environments, both college and graduate school, and provides advice and resources such at Penn First Plus, for finding a community for support.  Guest: Dr. Robert Ghrist Rober...

In this episode, we will be sitting down with Toyce Holmes, Assistant Director of the Penn Spectrum Program in Alumni Relations. Toyce discusses her Native upbringing and journey throughout college, touching on the different "pushes and pulls" she felt after moving away from her close knit home community. Throughout this episode, we reflect on these complex emotions FGLI students encounter when we...

In this episode, we sit down with Kia Lor (Penn GSE’16) as she recounts personal stories about her multicultural, FGLI narrative growing up as Hmong in Minnesota. We then reflect on how the FGLI experience continues past graduation, and explore how Kia learned how to reconcile her seemingly two separate lives at Penn and at home.  Guest: Kia Lor (GSE’16) Kia (she/her/hers) is a political refugee,...

In this episode, we sit down with Lyndsi Burcham (C’19) to talk about how she navigated FGLI advocacy at Penn to help bring monumental change for the FGLI community and the creation of Penn First Plus. We then take a deep dive into all of the bizarre and conflicting emotions that Lyndsi grappled with after receiving her first job offer post-grad––being excited yet feeling undeserving. Guest: Lynds...

In this episode, Khaliun and special guest Guadalupe talk about all things related to student organizations and adjusting to college at Penn. For Guadalupe, not only was this experience novel as she was the first in her family to graduate high school, it was also a stark shift for her in terms of environment and demographics. Guest: Guadalupe Espinoza (she/her/hers) sophomore in the College. At Pe...

In this episode, we (Peter and Khaliun) talk about our transition into Penn and touch a bit on the role of FGLI student orgs and advocacy. We also discuss how our journeys at Penn have motivated us to create this podcast, and outline the main ideas that we hope to explore in the future! So, stay tuned!   Instagram: @fglipodcast Email: ⁠thefglipodcast@gmail.com⁠  Penn Clubs: https://pennclubs.com/c...

Welcome to the FGLI Podcast! Throughout our episodes, we’ll be highlighting and celebrating the FGLI experience through conversations with first-gen low-income alumni as well as current students. Instagram: @fglipodcast Email: thefglipodcast@gmail.com   Penn Clubs: https://pennclubs.com/club/fgli-podcast Discord and website links coming soon! Speakers: Peter Hong (C'24) and Emily Chu (C'25...