USING ECONOMICS TO ILLUMINATE THE DYNAMIC HIGHER EDUCATION LANDSCAPE

For many decades, researchers have investigated the social and economic stratification of higher education, arguing that significant barriers to educational access and success exist for the working class (Laing, Chao, & Robinson, 2005; Lynch & O’Riordan, 1998; Sewell, 1971; Winston, 2004). Other researchers, such as Ogbu (1992), argue that cultural barriers are most significant in limiting educational access. These arguments frame educational access as a problem and characterize issues of access to higher education in terms of a deficit. Such a framing-particularly one that makes a priori assumptions about students, institutions, and the purposes of attending higher education-may provide an inaccurate picture and lead to poor public and institutional policy. A deficit perspective assumes that all students have the same needs and bring to college the same endowments, leading to a belief that prevailing structures and policies are best for all students.