2024 Opportunity Matters Book Club Selection

This year's book selection is First Gen a memoir written by Alejandra Campoverdi. Alejandra is a nationally recognized women's health advocate, founder, producer, writer, and former Obama White House official. With candor and heart, Alejandra retraces her trajectory as a Mexican-American woman raised by a single immigrant mother in Los Angeles. Foregoing the tidy bullet points of her resume, and instead shining a light on the spaces between, what emerges is a riveting testimony that shatters the one-dimensional glossy narrative we are often sold of what it takes to achieve the American Dream. Part memoir, part manifesto, First Gen is a story of generational inheritance, aspiration, and the true meaning of belonging.

About the Opportunity Matters Book Club

The COE Opportunity Matters Book Club engages individuals in a national discussion surrounding coming-of-age stories relating to cultural identity, social justice, and belonging. COE invites TRIO Programs, TRIO Alumni, and other members of the TRIO community to form local Opportunity Matters Book Club chapters in 2024 to engage in discussions about how their lives are reflected in literature.

Conducting a Book Club

Participating TRIO programs across the country will convene local book club chapters during the spring and summer of 2024. Clubs may have all or a subgroup of program participants read and meet regularly to discuss the book. COE will organize virtual talks by 3-5 nationally prominent individuals and registered book clubs will be able to attend the virtual talks and engage in a discussion on important themes and ideas explored in the book.

2024 National Book Club Chair

The 2024 national Book Club Chair is Deloris Davis Grant. Deloris is a graduate of Rhode Island College with a B.A. in English and a Master of Arts in teaching English. She is the troupe leader of the Central Falls High School (CFHS) International Thespian Society and a member of the English Speaking Union, which sponsors the National Shakespeare Oration Competition. Grant’s training in speaking and listening, as well as in language arts has spanned 30 years of experience. She is also a proud TRIO alumnus and along with her mother and sisters Anita, Diane, and Viola, was the 2018 recipient of the COE TRIO Family Achievement Award. She currently serves as an English teacher at Central Falls High School in Central Falls, Rhode Island.

Getting Involved

If you are interested in participating in the 2024 Book Club, please complete this form in its entirety. We will follow up and provide you with the information necessary to actively participate.