Dr. Shannon Telenko

DEI Consultant

Where did you go to school? Major?

Robert Morris University - BS in Business Management; Vanderbilt University - MEd in Higher Education Administration, American University - MA in Public Anthropology and PhD in Cultural Anthropology with concentration in Race, Gender, & Social Justice

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What involvement do you have with students at AU?

I support employees who work with students, and I am an OSARP Mentor.

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First-Gen Experience & Obstacles

Being a first-generation meant that it took me some time to find my career path because no one in my family graduated from college or worked at a college. I also believe that being a first-generation college student has made me a better observer and the ability to challenge the status quo in higher education. Obstacles I've faced include sometimes feeling like I'm the only person who has these perspectives and not always understanding how higher education works, even though I work in it now.

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Involvement Outside of School

I have an LLC for facilitating conversations and issues around bias; I am a board member of a language arts non-profit called Ridgelines here in central Pennsylvania; and I volunteer each election at our polling place.

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Tips/Motivation/Messages for First-Gen Students

You are college material, no matter what others say to you or how you may be feeling on a particular day. You deserve to be here, and you should feel empowered to ask questions and get involved with whatever interests you. There is a decent-sized community of others of us in this "club" and also many allies.