Originally Posted by irishtrekker

Pgarden, I understand what you're saying about academics and would be really interested in continuing the discussion with you, but maybe in another thread or via email? This one's getting a little nasty for me. My husband spent awhile studying these issues and working with disadvantaged youth to try opening up access to higher institutions, and I have some experience and thoughts myself on the matter. Anyway, if you're interested, let me know. Not sure I can provide any huge insight, but it's something that troubles me a lot, precisely because the roots are so embedded in so many socioeconomic factors that solutions seem difficult to parse.