“I’m actually a first-generation college student. It’s hard because everybody expects a lot from you. It’s pressure at times because they don’t really understand what it’s like and how hard it is to manage sometimes. But they’re proud of me and happy for me. I transferred here from a school in Alabama. I was a cheerleader there for two years, but I just didn’t feel at home. So for my last two years, I wanted to have that real college experience. That’s why I’m here. This is where my family wanted me to come to begin with.

I really love cheerleading. I started cheering during my sophomore year in high school. I did all-star cheer and I cheered in school. And in Alabama, I worked in a gym and coached an all-star team. Now I cheer at Jackson State.

It really has taught me to manage a lot of stuff well. I came here from Alabama doing a lot, and now I’m here doing pretty much the same thing. So for the most part, I’ve kind of got my time management skills down pat. Eventually, I want to open up my own gym and be a coach.”

– Steven, junior physical education major from Jackson, Miss.

“I’m classified as a sophomore, but this is my first year at JSU, so I feel more like a freshman. I was in the Summer Bridge Program, but most of my credits came from doing dual enrollment and AP courses in high school. So I came to JSU during the summer session with 41 credits, and by the end of the session, I had 47 credits. Next semester, I’ll be a junior. It was completely unplanned. In middle school, they always told me that I should take more challenging classes. Then once dual credit and AP courses became an option, I was like, ‘Why not?’ A lot of those credits can’t even be used for my major, which is engineering. But looking back, I probably would do the same thing again just to have the challenge.

When I graduate, I want to be a software engineer and be able to build code and programs to accomplish certain tasks. I know that the technology industry in Mississippi is small, but if I could play a part in growing that, I think that would be the ideal space to be. I don’t know what that looks like right now, but that feels like the dream. I’ve always loved Mississippi. I know there are other interesting places in the world, but I just feel grounded here. It’s my place. It’s my home. So like any normal person would want to do, I want to make sure my home is doing well. I want it to grow, and I want to make sure it’s at the highest standard and the highest quality.”

– Ethan, sophomore computer engineering major from Brandon, Miss.

“Istarted off at a community college, but during my last year there, I got pregnant. My initial reaction was denial because I didn’t have any symptoms. But, once I got over that, I was like, this is a choice that I made and I’m just going to have to roll with it. It is very challenging being a parent and being in college at the same time. I don’t always get to do things on campus. Sometimes I miss out on things, but that’s fine. I wouldn’t trade my daughter for anything.

Also, the support system that I have really helps me out. My daughter and I stay with my grandparents. They’re retired, so instead of me having to place my daughter in daycare, my grandparents watch her for me. That’s a big help.

And, I owe a lot to my professors. They know my situation, and they’ve really helped me. They’re really supportive, and they push me. They know that I’m not doing this just for me. I’m doing it for my daughter as well. I want her to have a better life because she deserves it.”

– Jantomi, senior journalism and media studies major from Denton, Tex.

“My mother and father were both in the military. My dad is a firefighter now, but my mom was in the military for 20 years, right out of high school. When I was little, maybe in kindergarten, she got deployed to Afghanistan for a year, and I stayed with my father in Grenada. It was really hard. She would send me mail, but my grandma couldn’t even finish reading it to me because I would be crying. I love my mom, and it was hard being away from her. I was so young that you would think it wouldn’t have affected me so much, but I was heartbroken. I just wanted to be with my mom.

When she came back, I cried a lot, but they were happy tears. We made big signs for her. We wrote on her car and gave her flowers. It was just very emotional because it had been so long, especially for a parent. I know she was going through it. So this was a happy moment with a lot of tears.”

– Iyanna, freshman business administration major from Tampa, Fla.

“Up north, we don’t have many HBCUs, and in Wisconsin, we don’t have any. My college and career advisor said that I should apply to some schools in Wisconsin, but if it wasn’t an HBCU, I didn’t want it. I had my mind set on attending an HBCU. I applied to three HBCUs.

I actually have two brothers who go here. One is a junior, and he thought I would really like it here. He said it was a good environment, and he spoke so highly about it. He’s the type who keeps to himself and doesn’t mingle around, so if he liked it, I knew I’d love it. So I thought, ‘Why not?’ And since we were already here, my younger brother came, too.

I love it. I really like it now since the campus is more open. I’m a sophomore, but it feels like it’s my freshman year. Last year, I was on campus but all of my courses were online. The only time I would really be out was when I went to the gym, the mail center, or the cafeteria. So I’ve never seen so many people on campus. I was able to experience homecoming which was super fun. I’m really happy.

It’s hard for me to feel alone here. It can be scary to be away from home, but all of these people are in the same boat as me. And everyone is friendly. And it’s really cool that both of my brothers are here.”

– Sade, sophomore journalism major from Milwaukee, Wis.

“I’ve been making music for about four years. It’s just in me. It’s energetic. It’s spiritual. It’s like a release. You could be going through a lot of stuff, and you can bottle it up and put it in a song. My goal is to move people with my music. There’s certain stuff I want to say to the people of this world, and everybody hears music. It’s played everywhere.

But it’s not just a music thing. There’s a business part of it, too. It’s networking and making the connections you need to make to be where you need to be. Initially, the band brought me here to Jackson State. But after I got an understanding of the music industry and validation, I definitely wanted to get a degree because it would make me stand out from someone who’s done all of the same things I’ve done but didn’t get a degree.

So I’m majoring in music to validate my skills. How would that look? You see me in the studio with a degree on the wall. It’s all about validation. You can know everything in the world, but who cares if you don’t have something to back it up? I would encourage anybody who’s trying to be an artist or producer to get a degree. I know that at any moment if I do it like anybody else, I can be replaced just like anybody else. But it’ll be hard to replace a scholar.”

– Marcus, freshman music major from Atlanta, Ga.

“I came to Jackson in 2016 after I got married. That’s how I was first introduced to Jackson State University. My husband works here. I started my graduate school program in the School of Public Health in the spring of 2017.

Jackson State is like a family for me. I have no one here, other than my husband. But somehow, I really feel unconditional support, love, and most importantly, respect from this university. When I first enrolled here, as a native of India, I had problems with my communication – my language, my accent, and everything. But I never felt left out. Everyone from my department, and from the university, has supported me throughout this journey. They’ve treated me like family – regardless of my color, my gender or anything that could divide us. They’ve always supported me.

While here, I also became pregnant and gave birth to a beautiful daughter in September 2018. After six months, I was to take my comps exam for my public health degree. I thought at that moment that it wasn’t possible because I was a full-time breastfeeding mom. But my department said, ‘Listen, you can take the exam in the exam hall, but if you have an emergency situation and you have to go feed your daughter or just take care of her, you can go ahead and do that. It’s not going to hamper your exam.’ I can’t explain how much that means to a mother. My baby, at that time, was only five months old. So if I didn’t receive that kind of support, I would have never believed that I could finish my comps and get my degree. It was a dream for me. I really want to share this story with everyone.”

– Shinjita, Ph.D. student in environmental studies from India

“My name is Deveonte. It sounds exactly how it’s spelled, but it gets butchered up every time. My second-grade teacher, Ms. Christian, noticed everybody kept butchering up my name, so she gave me the nickname ‘Dev.’ And it just stuck with me.

Ms. Christian was actually my first Black teacher, so it was a monumental step for me. I actually didn’t know how to handle it. Growing up, I was always the only Black child in class or in sports. On top of that, I had very long curly hair. So I would either get my name butchered up, or I would be called a girl. So having a Black teacher was a shock. Like, wow, another Black person besides me. I was grateful because she would help me interact with my race because I didn’t know how to, outside of home. She ended up being my fifth-grade teacher, too. She was pretty much my favorite teacher.

She was hard on me. And, soft with me at times. I didn’t always understand why, but now I do. Without Ms. Christian, I know I definitely would not be who I am today – a humanitarian from the heart. So I will forever be grateful for her.

Sadly, Ms. Christian passed away. She was definitely one of the people I would love to thank because she really changed my life.”

– Dev, junior speech communications major with a concentration in theatre from Chattanooga, Tenn.

“I was recruited here to be part of the bowling team. I had friends from Mexico who were also part of the bowling team, and I heard from them and girls from other schools that the JSU team was very united and nice to each other. That’s what I wanted. I wanted to be in a good environment with a good team. And I heard JSU had a good civil engineering program. So, I decided to attend.

At first, it was hard for my mom because I was the first of the family to leave. I can remember my mom crying every day because I was about to leave, and my sister told me my mom was sad that I wasn’t there. But my family knows that leaving has helped me to grow and become a better person, more responsible and all that stuff. So, they’re proud of me, and they’re happy I’m here. But of course, they miss me.

I was nervous to come, mostly because of my English. I can communicate, but I don’t speak like a native American. So when I got here, I was nervous that I wouldn’t understand people or they wouldn’t understand me. And the culture is also different. But once I got here, everyone was so nice, and I felt comfortable. I like it. Something I wasn’t used to was people saying hi to you, even if they don’t know you. Just people being nice without a reason.

– Mariana, sophomore civil engineering major from Sonora, Mexico

“Im from Greenwood, which is a really small town. Everyone knows everyone, and everybody wants to see everybody make it. We push each other to be the best we can be. So, when it came to academics, extracurricular activities or anything else, people always pushed me to do my best and do things that most people wouldn’t do. Basically, they wanted me to start a wave of everybody doing bigger things coming from our small city.

I chose Jackson State because it’s an HBCU with a great business program. It was an easy decision. My mother is real big on entrepreneurship, and my dad is real heavy in the stock market. And a lot of people in my family own their own businesses. I decided to come here to further my education, so I can take it back home and help my parents, my family, and my own business. I have a clothing line called Tresor, which is French for ‘treasure.’ And I’m actually working on starting another company.

I’ve had a really great experience at Jackson State. I actually started my clothing line a few months into my freshman year. I’ve met a lot of really great people. They’ve helped me a lot and established connections for me that I probably couldn’t have gotten on my own. I love it here. It’s like one big family, and I really don’t think I could have asked for a better school experience so far, aside from COVID.”

– Tia, sophomore entrepreneurship major from Greenwood, Miss.