A commitment to empowerment: Arlicia’s story
College Success Foundation champions students from low socioeconomic backgrounds to graduate from college as transformational leaders who forge a just and equitable society––a mission CSF alum, Arlicia Etienne, embodies in its truest form. We are privileged to share her life’s story of triumph and tremendous wisdom below:
May 4, 2018 was one of the happiest days of my life. That was the day I walked across the stage and received my Master of Arts in Urban Studies & Community Development from Eastern University in Philadelphia, becoming the first in my family to hold a Master’s degree.
For years I had heard my village say how proud they were of me for pursuing my educational goals, but on that day, I was able to look in the mirror and confidently say that I was proud of myself for pushing the envelope, breaking the glass ceiling and setting a new educational standard in my family.
The winding road that led me here today has been full of highs, lows, victories, challenges, seasons of chaos, seasons of winning. I am proud to say that College Success Foundation has been part of my journey going on fourteen years now: as a high school student, an undergraduate student, a grad student, a volunteer and mentor to current CSF Scholars, and an employee of the College Success foundation.
Finding joy in community
I am one of six children, number four of the Etienne bunch. I am grateful to have been blessed with a wholesome childhood, and growing up with so many siblings played a large role in that. We were a low-income family of eight growing up on the East side of Tacoma, but while we didn’t have money and materialistic things, we made up for it by using our imaginations to play outside until the sun went down, being highly involved in our church and attending community events.
My parents instilled within us the value of hard work. In the same vein, my parents also taught us “don’t work hard, work smart.”
Because of my parents’ experiences growing up in neighborhoods that reeked of generational poverty and systemic disadvantages for black people, they were determined to give their children a better life.
I was told at an early age: “You’re going to college, we don’t know how yet, but you’re going.” They were adamant that education was an avenue for a better quality of life and navigating unjust systems.
I first learned of CSF when I was in the 7th grade and my eldest brother went through the application process. Right away, my mom recognized the program’s value and made sure that we all applied to participate. When I was accepted into the CSF program, my “I want to go to college” finally became “I AM going to college.”
Overcoming immense tragedy
Just as I was beginning the most important chapter of my life, on May 4, 2008, my family got an unexpected knock on the door at 3 a.m. from the Tacoma Police department. They reported to us that my older brother Ronald had passed away. At 19-years-old, just two years older than me, and having just graduated from Lincoln High School the year prior, his life was unexpectedly cut short due to a congenital heart.
I was devastated. My second semester of my junior year of high school was prime time to prepare for college. I had crossed my T’s and dotted my I’s to get to this moment in my life, but after my brother passed away, I had no desire to finish the school year. I was clouded by grief and overwhelmed with the reality that you can spend your whole life preparing for a life that can be suddenly taken away from you at any given moment.
Ronald was an energetic, funny, and outgoing person who even at a young age, sought to live life at its fullest. If you knew me at 17-years-old, I was the exact opposite. But he inspired me to live life to the fullest. The worst thing to happen to me now became the soil in which I would grow into my God-given purpose.
Life-changing high-school mentorship
I’ll never forget the important role my CSF advisor at Lincoln High School, Mr. Jones, played in my families’ life that year. He supported my sister to push through and graduate with the class of 2008, just one month after we lost our brother. That July, he strongly encouraged me to read a poem I wrote in my brother’s honor during CSF’s summer program. He supported me through the process as this shy, reserved 17-year-old stood before 500 of her peers and shared her vulnerability. This became a pivotal moment in my life for choosing faith over fear.
I embraced the tragedy of losing my brother as one part of my story that was still being written.
I was a high-achieving student in high school. At the time, I believed that all I needed in order to be successful in college were scholarships to pay for it.
Little did I know that as a first-generation college student, I was entering into uncharted territory that required more than a high GPA but skills to navigate the complexity of systems in college.
Being intentional about college selection
Through the ushering of CSF and Mr. Jones, I was consistently pulled out of my comfort zone and challenged to “go further.” When I wanted to apply to just a couple of colleges, I was encouraged to apply to eight and got accepted into seven, which boosted my confidence and gave me more options than I thought I needed. After being accepted to the University of Washington, I decided that is where I wanted to go. In the CSF Scholars program, we were challenged to answer our “why,” so when I was asked why I chose UW and said, “It’s a prestigious university and very few of us got accepted there,” I was yet again encouraged to “go further” and be introspective about my choice.
Mr. Jones sat me down again in his office and asked if I had considered Seattle Pacific University. Because he was familiar with my family, understood my values and recognized my potential, he challenged me to consider a smaller university with values that aligned with my own, where my strengths would be cultivated. And he was right.
Mr. Jones offered to contact the admissions counselor and set up a personalized tour of the campus––just for me. I walked the campus, got the million questions I had answered, connected with students that looked like me and got the inside scoop of what it was really like to be a student there.
I walked away from the campus that day knowing that I would come back as a freshman. Something inside of me was reassured that this would be the place to cultivate my personal growth, challenge me to step outside of my comfort zone, and shape me for the next season of my life…and it did.
Transformational relationships
Mr. Jones and all of the CSF advisors embodied the care for us as students and individuals that’s valued at College Success Foundation, which ultimately inspired me to give back to my community and become a CSF advisor myself. I have devoted the past six years of my career coaching first generation high school students, college students and first generation college graduates with stories parallel to mine.
Sometimes changing someone’s life means being there at the right time, in the right moment when they need you most.
Today, I have the privilege of working at the University of Washington Tacoma as the Senior Completion Coach in the office of Academic Success programs where I create and develop initiatives for student retention and success. I live, work and serve in Tacoma because Tacoma is my home. And as a new homeowner, I can attest that there’s something special, sacred and self-motivating about investing in the place that is home for you and the generations coming after you.
Arlicia’s words of wisdom
I want to leave you with these words of wisdom:
If you are a current student: start now exploring your passions. figure out what you’re good at, figure out what you like to do, become the best you can be at it…then find a way to get paid for it. When you take that leap into the next chapter of your life, document your journey, share your story, reflect upon and celebrate your growth along the way.
If you are an educator: never underestimate the impact of each encounter you have with the students you serve. If you pour life into them, they will remember and it will fuel them in their long journey ahead. I have had students come back and recite verbatim a piece of advice I gave them five years ago when I thought they weren’t listening. Plant the seed and I guarantee you it will grow in its timing.
If you are a community member: invest in our youth and find ways to empower the next generation. The gifts, skills and wisdom you have is meant to be shared.
Your support today is crucial to the students and leaders who will follow in my footsteps. Think of it as a small seed. It all starts with a seed, and growth won’t happen without the seed. So today, I encourage you to plant a seed of support for our students so they can grow into their potential, because just like me, they can’t do it without you.
Arlicia’s story, originally featured at Empowering Youth Tacoma 2022, has been edited for length and clarity.