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From First-Gen to First Place, Award-Winning Research Proves Students Can Drive Their Own Success

When Beth Nahlik, Ph.D., took a hiatus from her higher education career in 2021 to pursue a doctorate full-time at 91��Ƭ��, she brought a wealth of personal and professional experience with her.

Having directed a TRIO Student Support Services program, Nahlik spent years advocating for low-income students, students with disabilities, and first-generation college students—an identity she shares.

That said, it may come as no surprise that her dissertation, titled: “Meaningful Relationships Between First-Generation Undergraduates & Faculty Members: A  Grounded Theory Approach,” was named Dissertation of the Year by the Midwestern Educational Research Association.

Nahlik’s research examines how first-generation undergraduates actively build meaningful relationships with faculty members and offers important implications for policy and practice aimed at fostering student connections and success.

But when deciding on a dissertation topic, she initially felt hesitant to focus on first-generation undergraduates. “It’s one of those things that’s in vogue right now,” she said, noting that she feared contributing to a crowded discourse. More importantly, existing literature often framed first-generation students from a deficit-based perspective, focusing primarily on what they lacked when entering college. That framing didn’t align with Nahlik’s higher education experiences. Encouraged by her mentors—including professors Tara Hudson, Ph.D. - who served as Nahlik’s dissertation chair, Alicia Crowe, Ph.D., and Tricia Niesz, Ph.D., Nahlik realized she had a distinct, asset-based perspective to offer.

The Power of "Tuning In" and Surprising Discoveries

Using a constructivist grounded theory approach, Nahlik examined student-faculty dyads, interviewing students and faculty together to explore how meaningful connections form. Her findings produced concepts like tuning in, vibing trust, and furthering connection.

At the core of her theory is "tuning in," which highlights the active labor students undergo when interacting with faculty. Long before engaging in conventional classroom behaviors, students continuously process verbal and non-verbal cues to assess whether a faculty member is trustworthy and approachable. This level of intentionality directly counters the notion that students are simply disengaged.

While her primary focus centered on student agency, the research yielded a surprising emotional finding from the faculty side. During dyadic interviews, several faculty members were “moved to tears” explaining how important these student relationships were to them. Nahlik believes It was clear that these connections are deeply transformative for educators and students alike.

Moving Beyond Sites of Interaction to Focus on Relationships First

Nahlik’s research found that these pivotal relationships usually begin early—often within a student's first semester—and persist throughout their academic journey. Many students noted that without their faculty relationships, they likely would not have stayed at the institution.

Despite their value, Nahlik believes higher education often leaves relationship-building to chance, prioritizing the sites where connections happen (such as classrooms or research labs) rather than treating relationship-building itself as a core objective. She advocates for higher education institutions to explicitly foster student agency and teach students how to initiate these connections—especially in a post-COVID landscape where navigating office hours can feel daunting.

Bridging Scholarship and Practice

Recognizing her work as the "Dissertation of the Year," Nahlik now puts her research into daily practice as the Director of Undergraduate Research at Case Western Reserve University. When advising undergraduates on getting involved in research, she encourages them to view the process fundamentally as a relationship-building endeavor. “I certainly use this work to help students at Case Western on ways to approach faculty and build meaningful relationships,” she said. “That's literally what I lead with. If you're trying to get involved in undergraduate research on campus, they should really think of it as a relationship building endeavor.”

Looking ahead, she hopes to expand her grounded theory model across varied institutional types while sharing her actionable findings in practitioner-focused venues to ensure they benefit students directly.