In 2017, incoming University of Florida student Kamelia Klejc — the first person in her family to attend college — overlooked a critical email.
So, when her little sister, Claudia, was accepted into UF years later — by then, the third sibling to attend college — Kamelia offered invaluable advice: Pay attention to your emails, particularly if they reference the Machen Florida Opportunity Scholarship (MFOS).
That’s “scholarship,” as in a full ride for low-income, first-generation college students, courtesy of UF’s former president Bernie Machen.
Indeed, the email arrived. Claudia opened it immediately. Thanks to MFOS, she is now finishing her senior year as a biomedical major in the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, focusing on biomechanics and looking toward a future in developing cutting-edge medical devices.
Nov. 4-8 marks UF’s First-Gen week, a celebration of students like the Klejcs who are the first in their families to attend college. That includes more than 5,100 Gators who received MFOS scholarships since the program’s inception in 2006; this year, there are 1,240 MFOS students on campus.
As a First Gen family, Claudia, Kamelia and their brother, David, remain shout-to-the-rafters proud and take nothing for granted. This is what their immigrant parents wanted when they moved from Poland to New York City, their mother six months pregnant with Claudia.
“It was a huge journey for them. They came with nothing. They had no knowledge of American culture. They did not speak English. It was kind of last minute, and we were the first ones from our family to come here,” Claudia said. “They knew from the beginning they wanted more educational opportunities for their children than they had in Poland.”
Their father was a professional soccer player in Poland, and their mother had a comfortable office job. They are traditional European parents with a strong work ethic who imposed no-nonsense curfews and strict homework parameters. In the states, they worked hard with a clear focus: Make sure their children have the best education possible.
When each child left for college — Claudia and Kamelia to UF, David to the University of North Florida — with scholarships, there were tears. Lots of tears.
“They were sobbing,” Claudia recalled. “They were so excited. I can’t even imagine how they felt, you know.”
“It was very, very bittersweet,” she continued. “It hit them hard when my sister initially got accepted into University of Florida with full Bright Futures. She told my parents, ‘Mama, we don’t have to worry about paying for college. You don’t have to worry about debt or anything like that.’”
The siblings recognize the sacrifices their parents made to leave the country they knew and loved. Their parents live in Jacksonville, where the siblings grew up, and have started small businesses. They still work very hard, Claudia said.
“It has been a heck of a ride, and I don’t know if my parents understand exactly what we do. It’s a struggle to explain it to them in Polish. They’ve never heard of this stuff before,” Claudia said. “It’s definitely a bittersweet feeling but also a reward, knowing that we’re able to give them the dream that they had always wished for their kids.”
Now the siblings dream of returning the favor: They want their parents to retire, so they can take care of them. After all, Claudia said, she owes her parents “everything.”
“My dad had to give up his soccer career. My mom had to give up her beautiful corporate job in Poland to come and transition to a cleaning service and a landscaping service,” she said. “There’s a sweetness to it, that they’re able to sacrifice and show how much they love us.”
According to the Center for First-generation Student Success, 26% of undergraduates in 2020 had parents with no postsecondary education, and 54% of those undergraduates had parents who did not have a bachelor’s degree (the more common definition of First Gen).
“First-generation students’ parents’ median income was $41,000 in 2016 and 2020,” the Center for First-generation Student Success reported. “Continuing-generation students’ parents’ income increased from $90,000 in 2016 to $103,000 in 2020.”
Created by Machen (UF president from 2004-2014), the Machen Florida Opportunity Scholars program not only awards scholarships to first-generation UF students, but it also provides mentorship and develops leaders to guide other incoming first-gen students.
Claudia has gone from MFOS mentee to mentor to leadership team member. The program also has led to internships, including Naples-based Arthrex, where she now works.
“It is one of the top leading medical device companies in the field of medical industry,” she said. “We focus on sports medicine and minimally invasive procedures. I’m fortunate to join as the radio frequency ablation engineering intern, and it’s led me to stick to the medical device industry and fall more in love with the relationship between the engineer and the patient and the surgeon.”
In the next 10 years, Claudia envisions creating a medical device start-up or building a clinic with her sister, who is now in medical school at Florida State University – a fact that makes Claudia groan a bit, but, of course, blood is thicker than rivalries.
“We talk about that all the time. She’s got to finish up school, get her doctor’s degree, and then we want to transition to our own clinic one day, where I can assist her on the engineering and product development side,” Claudia said.
Those are big dreams with tangible outcomes and family at the center.
“It’s definitely a bittersweet feeling, but also a reward knowing that I’m able to give our parents the dream that they had always wished for their kids,” Claudia said. “And hopefully I can transition that to my kids.”