The Undocumented, First-Generation College, and Low-Income Student Center (U-FLi Center), founded in the fall of 2016, is a dedicated support hub at Brown University for students who identify with the U-FLi experience. The Center provides a space for community, learning, and advocacy, offering programs and initiatives designed to promote holistic student success and a sense of belonging. 

Through leadership development, co-curricular engagement, strengths-based advising, and community-building, the U-FLi Center honors the unique challenges and strengths of students navigating higher education for the first time. In doing so, the Center empowers students to advocate for themselves and their communities by providing the tools, resources, and networks necessary to thrive.

Equity-Asset-Based Approach

By utilizing an equity-asset-based (EAB) approach as our grounding framework for student support, we place value on the strengths, assets and knowledge that U-FLi students already bring with them when they enter our institution. The center amplifies the following assets through our intersectional programming and strengths-based advising to provide students with the navigational tools to thrive at Brown: 1) collectivism, (2) resistance, (3) self-reliance and (4) reflexivity.

Principles

The center’s approach to supporting U-FLi students is grounded in the following principles:

• Visibility and Representation: The Center elevates the narratives and experiences of undocu-plus (undocumented, DACA,TPS, mixed-status family), low-income, and first-generation college students, ensuring their voices are heard both within our space and across the institution.
• Collaboration and Advocacy: The Center collaborates with campus partners to improve accessibility and support for students, advocating on their behalf and making referrals to additional resources when necessary.
• Holistic, Intersectional Support: The Center fosters identity development and belonging through intersectional, collaborative programming in partnership with other campus centers and affiliated student organizations.
• Institutional Change: The Center raises awareness of issues impacting undocumented students, advocating for institutional policies and services that support their unique needs. 
• Student Development and Advocacy: The Center honors its foundational history by offering opportunities to engage in campus advocacy through co-curricular engagement and leadership development. 

First-Generation College Students

The term "first-generation college student" is defined as a student whose parents or guardians did not complete a four-year college education, within or outside of the United States. At the U-FLi Center we encourage students to think of the term more broadly and welcome any student who self-identifies as having limited exposure to the college application process and the college-going experience. 

Low-income Students

For "low-income students," there is no income level that determines eligibility for students to take advantage of the community, programs, and advising of the U-FLi Center. Though generally, engaged students have little to no expected parent contribution as part of their financial aid package. Students who advocated for the inclusion of low-income students in the title of the center had powerful stories for how their class experiences impacted their time at Brown and expressed a desire for increased coordination of support.

Undocumented Students

An "undocumented student" is defined as a student who is not a U.S. citizen or Permanent Resident of the United States, and who does not hold a visa to reside in the U.S.

Undocumented students can find information about financial, legal, and co-curricular support through the Undocumented Student Program of the Center. The U-FLi Center also works closely with students who may identify with the "undocu-plus" experience: DACA-mented students, TPS holders, or students from mixed-status families.