Announcing the 2021-2022 First Year Reading Experience Selection

First Year Experience is excited to announce that, after a campus-wide selection process, the 2021-2022 First Year Reading Experience (FYRE) book will be “Tell Me Who You Are: Sharing Our Stories of Race, Culture, and Identity - A Road Map for Cultivating Racial Literacy” by Winona Guo and Priya Vulchi.

Winona Guo and Priya Vulchi deferred college admission to travel the country for a year collecting individual stories of how racism has impacted a wide range of individuals from all walks of life. Their goal was to spark meaningful discussions about how racism impacts us and what steps we can individually make to address racial inequity in our culture. “Tell Me Who You Are” presents more than 100 (from 500+ total) interviews along with historical information and strategies for effecting change.  

The FYRE program provides incoming first-year students with a common intellectual experience, shared with current members of the university community. Salem State University is one of the few institutions across the country that puts the selection of the common book in the hands of students through a campus-wide vote to determine what the incoming class will read. First-year students will have the book mailed to them over the summer along with guiding questions and information to consider while they read. 

Faculty, staff, administrators, and librarians are invited to join the First Year Experience as a group facilitator this fall on Opening Day (Wednesday, September 1) to discuss the book and its themes with the incoming Class of 2025. Sign up and submit your information.