Meet First-Gen Grad Damarius Johnson '19
Congratulations to all our First-Gen Graduates!
“I’m not alone in the struggles…or alone in my successes.”
Damarius Johnson ’19, Africana studies, is also a first-generation college student as well as a transfer student from the Community College of Baltimore County. Finding close-knit communities within UMBC has been the key to success. “UMBC has supportive communities that have helped me see college graduation as feasible,” he shares, “and then allowed me to go through the ups and downs that happen as a college student.”
“The McNair Scholars Program has been instrumental as far as focusing my attention on what I’d be pursuing after graduation,” says Johnson. That attention has paid off—he’ll begin a Ph.D. in history at the Ohio State University this fall.
The Transfer Engagement and Achievement Mentoring (TEAM) Program has connected Johnson with mentors and peers who have had experiences he can relate to, such as being the first in their family to attend college, transitioning from community college to a four-year school like UMBC, or experiencing college as a young black man, he says.
Johnson shares, “Having that support has been really helpful in knowing that I’m not alone in the struggles that I have, or alone in my successes. These are people I celebrate with, too.”
Several mentors have helped Johnson through his UMBC journey, and determining his next steps, including Michael Hunt, assistant director of the McNair Scholars Program; Gloria Chuku, professor and chair of the Africana studies department; and James Hamilton, an academic advisor in the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences. He started at UMBC not knowing what he might do afterward. But now, Johnson says, “I’m most excited about my transition from being an undergraduate to being a scholar in history. I’m excited for what that journey will be like, and to be learning in a new environment.”
“Hopefully it’s the beginning of something good for my family,” says Johnson, who has younger siblings. “I’m really happy to be able to honor them by getting to this point, because they’ve done a lot to support me.”
Posted: May 23, 2019, 8:48 AM
