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14 January, Washington, D.C. - A series of policy changes in federal
and state governments, and at universities, have made it exceedingly difficult
for students from low-income and working-class families to earn college degrees.
In America's Untapped Resource: Low-Income Students in Higher Education, a new
book from The Century Foundation, a group of notable experts on higher education
examine the substantial economic divide in higher education, discuss the ramifications
of that divide, and offer specific recommendations for increasing both college
access and success for economically-disadvantaged students.
As Congress and the Bush administration begin discussions over the reauthorization
of the Higher Education Act, authors in this volume explore how governments
and universities have moved away from the law's primary purpose: to expand access
to higher education. The authors offer both a rationale and a roadmap for reshaping
policies to better serve the students in greatest need of assistance.
"Low-income and working class students of all colors constitute America's
great untapped resource," said Richard Kahlenberg, a senior fellow at The
Century Foundation and editor of the volume. "The Congressional reauthorization
of the Higher Education Act and the ongoing debates in state capitals and within
individual universities will provide an opportunity to squarely face up to the
fundamental inequalities rooted in economic class. This volume provides important
new data and ideas to help those student realize their full potential -- for
their sake and for ours."
America's Untapped Resource includes an introduction by Kahlenberg, in which
he outlines the extent of the problem low-income and working-class students
face in higher education, and three essays: a discussion of federal, state,
and institutional financial aid polices by former College Board official Lawrence
E. Gladieux; an essay on profound problems in academic preparation, performance,
and "persistence" (meaning the ability to stay the course until graduation)
among low-income students in postsecondary institutions written by P. Michael
Timpane of the Aspen Institute and Arthur M. Hauptman, an education consultant;
and a chapter of affirmative action policies for low income students, as well
as minority students at selective universities, by Anthony P. Carnevale of the
Educational Testing Services and Stephen Rose of ORC Macro International. The
volume concludes with an appendix prepared by Donald E. Heller of Pennsylvania
State University, which shows significant variation in the percentages of low-income
and working-class students at the nation's 146 most selective colleges.
UNEQUAL PARTICIPATION AND PERSISTENCE IN HIGHER EDUCATION
As Kahlenberg's introduction notes, the problems faced by low-income students
in higher education include the following: low-income students go to college
in fewer instances than others; complete college at lower rates; and attend
four-year colleges generally, and selective schools particularly, with substantially
less frequency. He also notes that low-income students drop out of high school
five times as often as high-income students.
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