Episode 501: Nicole Lynn Lewis
In conversation with Nicole Lynn Lewis, Founder and CEO of Generation Hope and author of the new book Pregnant Girl: A Story of Teen Motherhood, College, and Creating a Better Future for Young Families.
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Musical credits:
"Are You Listening" from Elephant Shaped Trees by IMUNURI.
Released February 3, 2018.
Composed by André Pilette, with the help of Adam Garcia, Stephanie Leary, and Dan Wilson.
Lyrics written by Stephanie Leary.
Produced by André Pilette and Stephanie Leary.
Mixed by Brett Ryan Stewart of The Sound Shelter in Nashville, TN.
Mastered by Michael Fossenkemper of Turtle Tone Studio in NYC.
Song used with permission by the band.
Episode Transcript
This transcript is AI-produced and may contain errors. Please check back a few days after the episode airs for a cleaned-up version of the transcript.
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Teddy 0:00
Hi, this is Teddy and you're listening to Nicole Lynn Lewis, Founder and CEO of Generation Hope and author of Pregnant Girl on Two Broads Talking Politics. Get your vaccine.
Kelly 0:35
Hi everyone, I am Kelly. This is Two Broads Talking Politics and the other broad With me today is Nicole Lynn Lewis. Nicole is the founder and CEO of Generation Hope. We'll talk more about what that is, and also author of a wonderful new book called Pregnant Girl: A Story of Teen Motherhood, College, and Creating a Better Future for Young Families. Hi, Nicole.
Nicole Lynn Lewis 0:59
Hi, thank you so much for having me.
Kelly 1:02
Yes. Thank you for joining me, I'm just gonna start I'm biased as I often am, when I have people on this book was amazing. That's really great. I, I'm glad I'm not the kind of person who has to, you know, tear down people because this book was really wonderful. And I really enjoyed it.
Nicole Lynn Lewis 1:20
Oh, great.
Kelly 1:21
So let's start. Let's start with Generation Hope, actually, tell tell us a little bit about what generation hope is, what the mission is and why you founded it.
Nicole Lynn Lewis 1:32
So Generation Hope is a nonprofit organization I started about 11 years ago, we help teen mothers and fathers in the DC region or in their college degrees, but also helping their kids get ready for kindergarten. And we also advocate nationally for the needs of parenting students all across the country. And I started the organization because I've lived the mission, I was a teen mom, and was putting myself through college. And, you know, I was in high school and I discovered my pregnancy, I was a senior and had just been accepted into all these different schools and was an honor roll student college bound. And you know, despite having all of that going for me, I heard the same message that a lot of young women here, and that situation, your life is over, you're not going to go to college, you're not going to be successful. And I knew even then that education was probably the best bet for me to be able to provide for my daughter. And I started at the College of William and Mary when she was a little under three months old. So I was a new mom. And I was also adjusting to you know, college, which is not an easy thing. And over those four years experience, you know, homelessness, and how do you pay for childcare and food on the table every night and, you know, making tough decisions between textbooks and diapers and baby wipes and just really, really difficult on top of being an anomaly at William and Mary and really feeling isolated in my experiences as a student parent. But you know, I graduated in four years and walked across the graduation stage with my daughter and just saw how game changing my college degree was for both of us. And that was really kind of fueled a fire inside of me to start an organization that made this a reality for more parents across the country.
Kelly 3:16
Yeah, I just, you know, I could shaking my head reading this book, thinking about just how hard it is to be a parent, just being a parent, even if you have every advantage is just a lot. And going to college is a lot even if you have every advantage and doing both of those at once. It's it's inspiring.
Nicole Lynn Lewis 3:35
Yeah, it's um, I think, you know, they're like you said, I mean, any, any mother needs, support needs a village needs a network, any college student needs support in the village and a network. And the reality is, especially for young parents, those things are often missing. You know, those resources, that social capital, the village that you need to be successful, is often decimated by a pregnancy or it wasn't there to begin with. And it's really hard to feel like you're thriving every day as a as a parent, without all of those resources and support and to feel like you're doing well and you have what you need to succeed in college. So it's extremely difficult.
Kelly 4:19
So you talk early on in the book about how often a teen pregnancy isn't the first thing that's happened to someone, it's not the start. It's one more thing in a line of things that's been happening. Can you talk a little bit about that and about how, you know a lot of things that seek to talk about the the teen pregnancy epidemic are really focusing too late for what's actually happening.
Nicole Lynn Lewis 4:45
We often I think we've been conditioned to believe that everything's going well in a young person's life and then they get pregnant or you know, they are expecting a child and things spiral out of control, and then they experience poverty and then they can't go to school and you No opportunities are cut off for them. And in reality, that's usually not the case, what's more often happening is that young people in our country are up against so much already way before the pregnancy. So poverty, you know, they may be growing up in poverty, they may have lost parents to incarceration, substance abuse. We have students in our program who've grown up in foster care, I talk in the book about a scholar who was molested, you know, for example, and these are the harsh realities that are going on in our communities all over the country, that are often kind of the first things to happen before way before the pregnancy, and can really just set a young person on a trajectory that's really difficult and challenging and often hopeless, that, you know, I talk in the book about so many young people in this country who are struggling to hope and and that the pregnancy comes as a symptom of all the trauma, all the things that they're experiencing. And as well as raised, you know, I think we're having this national conversation about, about our country's legacy with racial oppression. If we're talking about teen pregnancy, and we're not talking about race, then we're totally missing the mark. And so all of these things are underlying issues that we have to really start to address and talk about in within the context of teen pregnancy.
Kelly 6:22
And so then, in your organization, in generation hope, when you are helping people and you talk about this being a two generation solution, that you're helping both the teen parent themselves go to college, but then also helping set up their children for success. How do you see that then playing out down the road? You know, how does this solve not just the problem of the moment, not just the teen parent getting through college, but continues to pay dividends down the road?
Nicole Lynn Lewis 6:53
Well, we know that when a parent earns their college degree, the outcomes for their child just skyrocket. So automatically when we help more young parents or parenting college students become college graduates earn a post secondary credential, there's we're setting up that next generation for success. So that's automatically happening. But we do believe that if we can infuse some critical supports into that critical early childhood time for that little one, that we're further accelerating their success. And, you know, there's such a powerful symbiotic relationship between a parent's success and their ability to thrive and their child's and any parent right can understand that. I just remember, you know, sitting in a college classroom, trying to focus but also, you know, recognizing I wasn't sure how I was going to put food on the table that night, or how was I going to set childcare up for the next month when I couldn't afford it, like those things make it really tough for you as a parent to be able to concentrate? So, you know, the two Gen model says, Why don't we really focus on the needs of both the parent and the child together, as opposed to in these silos, that can often be working against what we want to see. And what we ultimately want to see are strong families, we want to see parents and children thriving together. And so if we can do more to say, let's not only look at what the child needs, but also what their parent needs, if a child's not doing well in school, Perhaps it's because their parent is unemployed, and is at risk of being evicted. And so why don't we address the whole family and be able to support them together? And we're really thrilled to be doing that work a generation hope?
Kelly 8:28
What are some of the the types of support that you provide what, what all helps people in this situation, he helps them both thrive, as families, as parents, I also thrive in college be able to get that college degree?
Nicole Lynn Lewis 8:46
What I think is key about what we do at Generation Hope is that it's a holistic approach. So there's really nothing that's off the table in terms of something that might be going on. And one of our scholars lives, that we would say, Oh, no, we don't do that, you know, we, we have helped with connecting them to housing, we've helped to do their DACA status, we assist if there's a domestic violence situation, we help pay for groceries, when that may be a problem one month, we also provide on site staff mental health support. So that's always available to both parent and child. In addition to the academic stuff, we can help you pick your classes for next semester, or assist you with transferring to a four year school. Our philosophy is that we have to really be, you know, supporting the entire student, the whole person. And that means it's not just about all of your academics, and are you getting the right GPA? Did you pick the right class? But it's also about let's talk about it. If you're at risk of being evicted, if you're in a domestic violence situation, how do we help you get out of that situation into a safe space for you and your child, in addition to making sure that your child also has what they need, and we've seen that that holistic approach really matters. It really moves the needle less 2% of teen moms get a degree before age 30. Our scholar graduation rate is higher than the national average for any college student, whether they're parenting or not. So we're seeing that when you really address the needs of the entire student, the whole person, that you'll see success, and they'll see success. And we're hoping that it encourages others to do the same.
Kelly 10:21
You, of course, didn't have Generation Hope when you were going through college. You do talk some in the book, though about about individuals who supported you, you know, this sort of built your own village to help get you through? Can you talk some about that, what just having some of those people who are even just willing to listen to you, or be someone you can lean on what what a difference that can make?
Nicole Lynn Lewis 10:46
There were definitely people in my journey, they weren't in the kind of formal structure of a program, as you said, I had a principal in high school, I had a guidance counselor in high school who kind of went to bat for me, I had a teacher who was just wonderful became like a second mom, to me. And even in college, I had a financial aid counselor who really worked hard to get me a financial aid package that would support my daughter and I. And so I really understood the importance of what I call kind of champions in the life of a young parent and a young person. And that's critical. And all of us have the opportunity to show up in that way for a young person. And particularly for young parents. The reality is that many young parents don't have that social capital, they don't have those champions in their lives. But for me, it made all the difference to have people who could see past my pregnancy and see that, you know, I still have potential and could do great things.
Kelly 11:41
And your daughter, now the daughter that you were raising when you were in college, is now in college or just grad? Yeah,
Nicole Lynn Lewis 11:48
she's a senior, she's about to graduate. Yes.
Kelly 11:51
How's she doing?
Nicole Lynn Lewis 11:52
She's doing great. She's doing really well. She's a business major, she's really clear on what she wants to do. And I tell people all the time, she sometimes she'll go to complain to me about how difficult college is. And then she's like, wait a minute, to complain to you, because you were raising an entire human being, you know, while you were in college. So we laugh at that. But yeah, it's come full circle for us as a family. And I think it's a great example of the fact that, you know, this is, this has generational impacts the fact that she's now going to school, she's about to graduate and get her degree, it's all about this long lasting impact on families creating this legacy of education. I think she's a great example of that.
Kelly 12:35
Yeah, I love that in just a your stories of her as a baby and a toddler. I mean, I think that's the piece that often is, is missing in media stories, right, you know, when you talk about teen pregnancy and the epidemic of teen pregnancy, and you know, and you don't think about people as people, right? Yes, as the mom as a person and as a person. And that is, that's such a great part of the book that you've written is in not just you, you talk about some of the students that you've helped along the way and, and hope as well, but it really is, is humanizing and makes you really want to care about, you know, I care in a general sense, but visually, and specifically about the people who can be helped by this program.
Nicole Lynn Lewis 13:22
Yeah, no, I think that's a great point. And I'm so glad that came through in the book. I want people I feel like there's connection and vulnerability. And so it was really important to me that the story was vulnerable and made people feel like, wow, I get that I get that, you know, overwhelming commitment to making a better life for you and your child, like any parent can understand that. And I hope they see that, you know, people see that and my story with Marissa and that was something that was really important to me. And I do feel like we, you know, there are all these issues that we care about homelessness and, and poverty and child hunger, and all of these things that we talked about. But we're often not talking about the people at the center of these issues. And just as you said, you know, they're real people, and they're real families, and many of them are young families. And so if I can help people to kind of peel back the layers and see, you know, that that these young parents just want to create a better future for themselves and their children like all of us do, then I think that's a win.
Kelly 14:22
And what what are the kinds of the these students that you're helping, you know, what, what is the range of schools that they're going to and things that they're studying, you know, what, what is it that they want to get out of this experience and go on to do
Nicole Lynn Lewis 14:38
We support through our direct service work in the DC region, students who are attending 20 different two and four year schools. Most of the students that start in our program with that started Community College and about 90% of community college students in our program transferred to a four year school with the support of our program. They're studying tons of different majors. And really that's because we really let them kind of tell us what are you passionate about? What do you want to study, and then we kind of rally around them and help them get to their goals. But across the country, about one in five undergraduate students is actually parenting. And when we look at it through a racial lens, it's almost half of black, all black female undergraduates across the country. And again, they're studying all different majors you're going to find your largest share of, of student parents attending community colleges, but they're also attending for your schools as well. So this is a population that's significant, but it's an invisible population.
Kelly 15:35
Yeah. And what would something that like the American family act that has been proposed, would that provide supports that would would help this population? Absolutely,
Nicole Lynn Lewis 15:48
I was really encouraged. When I when I saw the, the the act come out, and the initiatives that are proposed things like free community college, as I said, student parents are more likely to attend community colleges with that flexibility to complete within four years is huge, because we know that if you're a parent, you're likely having to work to support your family. And so going to school full time is not always realistic. Also investment in under resourced institutions like HBCUs and MSI eyes and community colleges, that's huge for this population, and more likely to be students of color. But also things like universal pre K, and affordable childcare. These are things that we often talk to talk about in the context of workforce. But the reality is that they also help parents get their college degrees in childcare is one of the biggest obstacles for student parents to actually complete because it's so hard to find affordable, reliable childcare. And it's, it's very hard to find it on a college campus. So there are a ton of things in the ACC that I think are crucial to student parents success, and we'd love to see them actually become a reality.
Kelly 16:57
Yes. I would love them to become a reality for all sorts of reasons. Yeah. Key one. So if people who are listening, want to help generation hope, what are their ways that they can get involved? How can they donate?
Nicole Lynn Lewis 17:14
Yeah, so you can go to generationhope.org. If you're in the DC region, we would love to have you volunteering and joining us in any kind of capacity, we're in the process of recruiting mentors to our program now. But also, if you're not in the area, we do have opportunities for you to volunteer virtually. So tutoring is something that people can do no matter where they are in the country. If one of our students is having some trouble in a certain class, we can connect them with a tutor who's in or outside of the area. So there are a ton of ways to get involved. And you can also find us on Twitter and Instagram at support Gen hope, and we'd love to continue the conversation there.
Kelly 17:50
What has the past year look like being obviously a pandemic has all sorts of negatives that come with it. But I work in higher ed. And so I know that higher ed has changed, certainly changed over the course of the year. But there are certainly things that could continue as well that remote schooling may continue or flipped classrooms, or how does that affect students who are young parents? You know, are there opportunities, there were challenges there that weren't there before.
Nicole Lynn Lewis 18:22
I think that the pandemic has forced higher ed as a sector to kind of face the fact that there's some populations that have just been falling through the cracks, even before COVID-19. And now the pandemic has made it even more important for institutions to really start to focus on who is falling through the cracks and student parents is one of one significant group that has been falling through the cracks, they're 10 times less likely to graduate even before COVID-19 we know that that they pandemic has just exacerbated many of the challenges that they had coming into the pandemic. So I think there's a real opportunity here for institutions to start to prioritize and focus on the population, this population, there are some things that I'm hoping that we come out of COVID-19 hanging on to in the higher ed sector, things like flexibility is huge for parenting students, you know, a synchronous versus synchronous learning. We've seen where you know, being able to have some flexibility in your schedule as a parenting student is really critical, not only in the pandemic, but ongoing to to have that flexibility to not have that rigid kind of requirement for when you have to sit in a class or sit in front of a computer is huge. I think also the emergency grants that we've seen, distributed throughout the pandemic have meant the difference between you know, dropping out and being able to continue for student parents. And I'm hoping that we see institutions hanging on to these programs even coming out of the pandemic, because it is critical. Those supports are key and I talk in the book about so many times I was close to falling through the cracks and You know, really being at the edge? And what would, you know, $100 would have meant, you know, to me in terms of childcare or food on the table. So I think that's what we're hoping to see as well. And then lastly, I would say, I think we have this moment where we can really I often say, student parent work is racial justice work. And I think that over the past year with the the increased attention to the role of race, and in terms of our systems in this country, this is an opportunity for institutions to say, let's connect this student parent work to the racial equity agenda that we have for our institution. So I'm hoping that we see that as well. Yeah, I
Kelly 20:38
hope so, too. And how can people get this wonderful book,
Nicole Lynn Lewis 20:41
They can get it anywhere books are sold. So Amazon, Barnes and Noble, your favorite local and independent bookstore, but you can find it anywhere that books are sold.
Kelly 20:53
It's really it's beautifully written. So it's not just that it's a moving story, but it you know, it's just the language that really sweeps you up in in the narrative that you're telling, while also giving lots of facts and information that are crucial. So I just, it's a fantastic read.
Nicole Lynn Lewis 21:09
Thank you so much. I appreciate that.
Kelly 21:11
Yeah. Is there anything else that you wanted to make sure we talked about today?
Nicole Lynn Lewis 21:16
I don't think so. You had such great, great questions. I think you covered everything. It was really wonderful.
Kelly 21:22
Excellent. Thank you. So Nicole, thank you so much for speaking with me today. Thank you for the work that you're doing. I hope that people just start throwing money at you and expand all over the country. Keep doing this.
Nicole Lynn Lewis 21:39
Thank you for having me on.
Kelly 21:40
Excellent. Thank you.
Sonya 21:43
Thank you for listening to Two Broads Talking Politics, part of the DemCast Podcast Network. Our theme song is called Are You Listening off of the album Elephant Shaped Trees by the band IMUNURI and we're using it with permission of the band. Our logo and other original artwork is by Matthew Weflen, and was created for use by this podcast. You can contact us at TwoBroadsTalkingPolitics@gmail.com or on Twitter or Facebook @twobroadstalk. You can find all of our episodes at TwoBroadsTalkingPolitics.com or anywhere podcasts are found.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
