Contributors

ELON, N.C.—First-generation college students—those who do not have a parent who completed a four-year degree—may feel isolated, as though other students can’t relate to their experiences.

With that in mind, Womble Bond Dickinson lawyer Tracy Smith was a guest speaker at the NC Emerge 1G Summit. The event, which took place Jan. 20 at Elon University, examined issues impacting first-generation college students and included participating students from Elon, UNC-Chapel Hill, Salem College, UNC-Greensboro, High Point University, UNC-Charlotte, and N.C. A&T State University.

Smith, herself a first-generation college graduate, spoke about her personal journey and took part in a question-and-answer session with students. She was joined by other first-generation graduates from the tech, finance and journalism sectors.

The NC Emerge 1G Summit was hosted and led by Elon’s Examining Disparities in Educational Access Living Learning Community.

Tracy Smith is an experienced e-discovery lawyer who assists clients in nationwide product liability matters, antitrust litigation, government investigations, commercial disputes, second requests, tax disputes and patent litigation.