CCU faculty and students will hold a panel discussion titled "First Generation College Students: Challenges and Opportunities" on Thursday, Sept. 7, at 4:30 p.m. in Johnson Auditorium. The event is free and open to the public.

This panel discussion focuses on the difficulties, pressures and opportunities faced by first-generation college students. Current CCU students, alongside faculty who were the first in their families to graduate from college, will discuss their experiences of college life and campus culture and how these have shaped their perspective on academics, society and life in general.

The discussion is part of the Tea & Ethics series hosted by CCU's Jackson Family Center for Ethics and Values.

Panel members include Teresa Burns, associate professor and associate dean of physics and engineering science, and Edward Perez Jr., lecturer of philosophy and religious studies.

"A significant percentage of CCU students are first-generation college students," said Nils Rauhut, professor of philosophy and religious studies and director of the Jackson Center. "We know that first generation college students face unique financial, psychological and academic challenges, and this panel discussion will not only clarify what these challenges are but also discuss strategies and resources of how to respond to these challenges."

Tea & Ethics has been the flagship event of the Jackson Family Center for Ethics and Values since 2004. The Jackson Center aims to cultivate ethical awareness in the community through programs and events fostering inclusive conversations on important contemporary ethical issues.

The Johnson Auditorium is in room 116 of the E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration, located at 119 Chanticleer Drive E. on the main Conway campus.

For more information on this event or the Tea & Ethics series, contact Kaitlyn Powalie, the assistant director of the Jackson Center, at knpowalie@coastal.edu or at 843-349-4149. Visit coastal.edu/jacksoncenter/.