Georgetown Scholars Program (GSP), a program that provides resources and support to first-generation and low-income (FGLI) students at Georgetown University, hosted a kickoff to start its 20th anniversary celebration week, GSProud Week, on Healy Lawn on Nov. 18.
The kickoff featured various stations, including a pizza stand, a GSProud merchandise table offering hats and an activity station where attendees created suncatchers and wrote on the star-shaped cards about why they are “GSProud.” The event was open to both GSP members and non-members.
Sharona Nagamuthu (SFS ’26), a member of GSP student board, said she hoped GSProud Week would increase the visibility of GSP and FGLI students.
“I think FGLI visibility on campus is important,” Nagamuthu told The Hoya. “We chalked earlier, so if you walk through Red Square, you’ll see a bunch of things on the ground. And I think that helps a lot. Just knowing what GSP is, that’s the biggest thing we want.”
GSP has served more than 2,600 students since its inception in 2004 and centers on four core tenets: advising and mentorship opportunities, community building, necessity funding and advocacy.
Nagamuthu said the kickoff was an opportunity to bring together the wider Georgetown community.
“Kickoff is one of our events that is open to everyone, not just GSP members,” Nagamuthu said. “So it’s really great to see a lot of people, not only GSPers, but friends of GSPers or grad students that are walking by that have come out. So it’s been going really great so far.”
Michelle Ramos (CAS ’25), the co-president of the GSP student board, said the 20th anniversary of GSProud is important because it is a community that is deeply meaningful to her and one she has cherished seeing grow over time.
“It means being able to contribute back to a community that has given so much to me and watching it thrive and grow,” Ramos told The Hoya. “It allows us to think about ways we can continue the program as we continue forward.”
Lisa Kennedy (CAS ’25), the other co-president of the GSP student board, said this year is also the 10th anniversary of the GSProud celebration.
“This is the 10th anniversary of our GSProud celebration, which was started by some of our first GSP student board members,” Kennedy said. “We are looking back at our program over the past 20 years and the past 10 years of GSProud and looking forward to how much more we hope to grow as well.”
Kennedy added that the theme of this year’s GSProud’s celebration week is reflection.
“Our theme for GSProud this year really speaks to us celebrating the 20 years,” Kennedy told The Hoya. “Our theme is reflection, so we are looking back at how much leaders in the program have grown it and what they went through to build the foundation for the program that we have today.”
Members of GSP are selected by an external committee based on certain criteria, including “high achieving students” from first-generation and low-income (FGLI) backgrounds.
Nagamuthu said GSP offers students opportunities to find community at Georgetown.
“Not as a student board member, but just as a GSPer in general, I feel like GSP has definitely given me a huge community on Georgetown’s campus that I feel like I may not have been able to get otherwise,” Nagamuthu said. “There’s people that just understand and relate to me, whether it be in my background or just understanding the nuances of Georgetown, that I really appreciate.”
Ramos said the kickoff event showed how far GSProud has progressed and how much its presence on campus has increased.
“We have more non-GSPers now than ever before, and it is really showing how much GSP has grown in visibility on campus,” Ramos said.
