'Going To Office Hours Is Terrifying' And Other Tales Of Rural Students In College

Two students share a laptop in the atrium of the chemistry building at the University of Michigan. One, Cameron Russell, is white, a freshman from a rice-growing parish in Louisiana; the other, Elijah Taylor, is black, a senior and a native of Detroit.

They are different, yes, but there is much that unites them.

Both are the first in their families to go to a four-year college, a tough road Taylor has already traveled. Now he's serving as a mentor to Russell, whose rural background brings with it struggles that only a tiny handful of universities, including this one, are beginning to acknowledge and address.

"Most of the things he's asked me, I had exactly the same questions," says Taylor as the two discuss the tribulations of calculus and CHEM 351: Fundamentals of Biochemistry. ("Once you get past 351, all is well," Taylor assures his mentee.)

Taylor says neither student can "call home and say, 'Mom, how do I navigate the college experience?' "

Many colleges and universities were caught by surprise when frustration among rural Americans spilled over into national politics during the 2016 election. That, in addition to steady declines in enrollment, has pushed some schools to pay more attention to rural students — and to recognize that these students need at least as much help navigating the college experience as low-income, first-generation racial and ethnic minorities from inner cities.