Anthony Desiderio, Director of Scholar Programs at St. Francis College in Brooklyn, New York
Anthony Desiderio went from being an academically dismissed college student to an institutional leader for first-generation college students at St. Francis College. Anthony is a 2023 NASPA Award winner for First-Generation College Student Success by building a program that started with 15 students in 2015 to a program that graduated over 100 students first-generation college students. Anthony has presented at several conferences about supporting equitable outcomes for first-generation college students.
Anthony Desiderio’s transformation of the Robert J. McGuire Scholarship program has advanced the equity of first-generation college students at a four-year private/catholic institution at St. Francis College in Brooklyn, New York. Desiderio has created a robust program for these first-generation college students that has given students a sense of belonging through dedicated workshops, service opportunities, one-on-one coaching with Desiderio three times a semester, a mentorship program, a jacket ceremony, and an advisory board to give first-generation college students an identity on campus. In the 2022-2023 academic year, 95% of students reported interest in civic engagement, a sense of belonging to the institution, interest in giving back to the program as alumni, found their scholarship program to exceed their expectations, etc. The program has made vast strides in retaining students and graduating first-generation college students at remarkable rates.
On average in the United States, only one in three first-generation college students graduate in four years. 84% of students in Desiderio’s program graduated on time, which is significantly higher and attests to the support and equitable advances we have been able to create for their students to thrive and succeed. From last year’s academic year, 78% of the students were part of an honors society, 82% have been involved in an internship, research with faculty, or a certain program, and 86% of students were involved in a club or association on campus.
