 Dear reader,
We spend a lot of time at Hechinger covering educational pathways into the middle class, but this week we found a disturbing trend: Middle-class students are among those disappearing fastest from college campuses.
In response, some schools are announcing special scholarships to help cover their tuition, which may alleviate one problem while creating others. The new approach is driven by some real math: The proportion of middle-class high school graduates heading straight to college is gradually declining, from a high of 67 percent in 2010 to 62 percent in 2015.
The reasons behind this waning commitment to college? The biggest is no surprise: Fully a quarter of middle-class higher schoolers who don’t plan on college said it was because of the expense. We’d love to hear your thoughts on this trend. Reply to this email to tell us what you think.
Liz Willen, Editor
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 Main Idea |
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The proportion of middle-class students at colleges and universities has been quietly declining, sharply enough that some institutions — worried about the effect on campus diversity and their own bottom lines — have started publicly announcing special scholarships to cover all or most of their tuition.
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Reading List
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Whether that reason is to pursue a religious education, escape the diversity of the public school system, to pursue a special curriculum or to learn within the confines of a particular socioeconomic, gender or racial identity, some parents are comfortable paying twice — through taxation and tuition — to enroll their child in private school.
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Sensational storylines aside, both the lawsuit brought against Harvard last fall and the “Operation Varsity Blues” scandal that swept universities this spring captured the public’s attention in part because they challenged the notion that college admission, at its core, is based on merit.
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Many people were likely surprised when the long-awaited decision in the Harvard Asian-discrimination case came down and U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs ruled in favor of Harvard. It appeared the smart money, after the shroud was removed from the Harvard admissions process, would be on Harvard losing, a seeming perpetrator of discrimination against Asian-Americans.
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Research shows that the early years are the best time for children to learn tolerance and respect for kids from other races, cultures and backgrounds. But that’s not happening nearly enough, according to a new report.
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At some of these schools, more than half of students default on their loans. It’s a dismaying figure. But to be honest, after spending much of the last few years reporting on for-profit certificate schools, which make up the bulk of the education agency’s list, we weren’t exactly surprised.
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At the most recent meeting of the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC), delegates voted to scrap a ban on the use of incentives to entice students to apply early.
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Specifically, the analysis found that more than 43 percent of white students admitted to Harvard between 2009 and 2014 fell into four preferential categories: athletes, legacies (the children of alumni), the children of big donors or faculty and staff children.
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More K-12 schools are emphasizing the noncognitive skills that students can access throughout their schooling and careers. There is good reason to make this investment. But just as recognition is growing that these skills matter, our youngest students are losing out on opportunities to practice and hone such skills.
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Solutions
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This week’s solutions section came from SolutionsU powered by Solutions Journalism Network and their database of solutions journalism. Search for more solutions.
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👋 Contact Nichole Dobo at [email protected] if you want to chat about story ideas or give feedback on any of The Hechinger Report’s newsletters.
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We cover inequality and innovation in education with in-depth journalism that uses research, data and stories from classrooms and campuses to show the public how education can be improved and why it matters.
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