GREENFIELD — Some of Greenfield Community College English professor Steve Poulin’s early jobs included working in the boiler room at the Monson Developmental Center while he was attending the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and before that, working on oil rigs in the South. But higher education allowed Poulin to find a new self-identity.

“[Higher education] transforms your sense of self. When a professor takes an interest in what you have to say, what you’ve written about, how you’ve contributed to a discussion, you get a different view of who you are and what you’re capable of,” Poulin said. “And I can’t think of another environment other than [higher education] where it can be so transformative.”

Poulin’s was just one of many stories shared as part of Greenfield Community College’s fifth annual “First-Gen Week,” celebrating students and staff who are first-generation students. More than half of all GCC students are first-generation, meaning their parents did not earn a bachelor’s degree, or they self-identify as the first in their immediate family to attend college.

While Nov. 8 is National First-Generation College Celebration Day, GCC extends the recognition throughout the week that follows with campus-wide activities, food and community displays honoring the achievements of first-generation students.

For Poulin, the week of programming captures the supportive environment GCC provides for first-generation students.

“Over 50% of the faculty and staff are first-generation [at GCC], so we know the challenges that first-generation students face, from economic, social and even family pressure,” Poulin said. “And what I’ve found at GCC especially is the support you receive to overcome those challenges is really unmatched.”

GCC President Michelle Schutt was a first-generation student, too. An element of change that higher education provided for her was economic transformation.

“A little piece of advice I can give you is that differences you are feeling between you and some folks who have chosen not to invest in education may never go away,” Schutt told those gathered for Thursday’s “First-Gen Party” at the Cohn Family Dining Commons. “When we talk about things like this, we are talking about [economic] class jumping. You change classes when you get educated.”

According to a new report that Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce published in October, American workers with a four-year degree ages 25 to 54 earn a median annual salary of $81,000, 70% more than their peers with a high school diploma alone. Workers with four-year degrees also face much lower unemployment rates (2.9% compared to 6.2% for people with high school diplomas).

The economic and personal transformation provided by higher education, and GCC in particular, were clear in the story of River Matos, a current GCC student.

Matos first attended GCC in 2009, but had to drop out due to being homeless at the time. Matos secured housing, started a family and tried to come back to GCC throughout the years, but it never worked out. However, under MassEducate, which allows Massachusetts residents who don’t already have a bachelor’s degree to attend community college for free, Matos was able to return to GCC.

“I never thought I’d really be able to go past a bachelor’s at any point in my life,” Matos said. “But since coming back … just having the support and the Disability Services Department telling me all of the accommodations I qualify for opens up a whole new realm of possibilities for me. I feel like I could get a PhD someday if I wanted to. It’s much more attainable now.”

On top of the personal stories shared, speakers offered advice to prospective first-generation students or current students at GCC.

For people interested in attending GCC, Matos said, “There’s a place for them. I feel like something that keeps people from education, and kept me from education, was, ‘I don’t belong there. I’m not like the people that get to go to college.’

“But, that’s not true,” Matos continued. “We have so many clubs, support groups and stuff like that, so there’s something for everybody. And it’s free right now.”

Matos added that students shouldn’t be afraid to ask for help.

“I get that there’s still some stigma around accepting help, but there shouldn’t be,” Matos added. “And if you subscribe to that, you’re helping reinforce that stigma, not just for yourself, but for other people.”

Poulin encourages students to pursue their education, regardless of how scary it may seem.

“It can feel like a great risk. But the rewards will always outweigh that trepidation, and my advice is, take advantage of this wonderful resource. GCC is such a gem,” Poulin said. “There’s really little to lose in walking through the door and exploring what [GCC] has to offer. There’s a ton of stuff you can read about the benefits of a college education, but it is not until you actually meet people here at GCC or another college that you can really measure how impactful that risk can be.”

Tony Hernandez is currently a student at Greenfield Community College.