About

Our Story

The Alliance for the Low-Income & First-Generation Narrative (AL1GN) is a student-centered conference series and coalition dedicated to empowering and connecting first-generation and low-income (FGLI) students. AL1GN began in 2015 as a coalition of FGLI students and the staff who support them, growing to now include hundreds of students, staff, faculty, and administrators from dozens of schools and organizations. Since 2015, we’ve held 5 annual national conferences and have served over 25 colleges and universities across the country.

Our Vision

AL1GN strives for a fair and equitable higher education system that empowers all students to become successful college graduates, regardless of socioeconomic status, generational educational attainment, race, immigration status, or other protected classes. In response, AL1GN works to provide a platform for first-generation and low-income students to share their diverse narratives, build community, and discuss innovative policies and programs to implement at their home institutions. Our programming centers student experiences, academic and professional development, and local and national activism.

Our Conference

AL1GN seeks to provide a forum on which FGLI students can take control of their own diverse narratives while working together with faculty and staff to spark new and revamped programming at their home institutions. Over the course of a weekend, participants exchange ideas, create new relationships with fellow student leaders and concerned staff, and develop the foundation on which impactful work can occur. Our policy is that housing for students will be provided, and admission and meals are free for all attendees.

AL1GN is student-centered. Each year, two undergraduate students from our host school assemble a team of other students, staff, and administrators to plan a conference that they’re proud to host. Students choose themes, workshop topics, speakers, and more, with the support of the AL1GN National Team.

Our Team

The AL1GN National Team supports each team of undergraduate organizers as they plan the annual national conference. Our permanent team currently consists of the following members:

Chris Lam is one of the co-founders and current co-executive director of AL1GN. He graduated in 2017 with a dual Bachelor’s from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University and the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Columbia University. He previously worked as a data scientist and started his PhD in Astronomy at the University of Florida in Fall 2020. He is from South Florida and is always talking about dropping a mixtape that never comes.

Michaela Moses joined the AL1GN executive team after organizing the 2019 National Conference at her alma mater, the University of Virginia, where she graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in History. She now lives on the Eastern Shore of Maryland and works as a consultant. Michaela is originally from the Adirondack Mountains in northern New York and was the first African American to graduate from her high school.

Kathryn Radziwonski joined the executive team in 2022 and helped roll out the inaugural class of the AL1GN STEM cohort. She graduated from Stanford University in 2022 with a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature and is continuing her studies at Stanford as a Master’s student in Computer Science. When she’s not planning AL1GN events, she enjoys hiking with her friends and exploring every coffee shop within a five-mile radius.

Are you an AL1GN alum looking to stay involved? Say hi – you might be just who we’re looking for!