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Introduction Economic disparity and polarization has been an issue in higher education since higher education has existed in America. Traditionally, children of the wealthiest households in America have more educational opportunity than those who come from the poorest households. While some institutions are working to base admissions on talent and potential and not on economic privilege, the average student body does not reflect the economic diversity of the population as a whole. Once those lower income students who do manage to make it through the process of admissions and financial aid start their education, they face a unique set of challenges that their wealthier counterparts may not. Like the majority of non-traditional students, low-income students have to find their way through a world that wasn’t built for them. As a non-traditional, low-income graduate student, I know how hard this can be, and how the free resources available through the library and other departments can increase the potential for success and level the playing field. Low-Income Student Distribution in Higher Education Marx (2011) points out that “Wealthy students still have plenty of great options. The less advantaged have discouragingly few at elite colleges, community colleges, or public institutions, particularly with decreased state and federal investment in public higher education.” However, the percentage of lower-income students is highest in community colleges and less selective 4-year colleges, and least in elite 4-year institutions. According to Carnevale and Strohl (2011), “Nearly 80 percent of the lowestincome students go to colleges in the bottom half of the postsecondary system”.
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Libraries and librarians who work for the institutions on the lower end of the higher-education hierarchy are likely to see more low-income students. While lowincome students may have the same general information needs as those who are wealthier, the library ensures that low-income students have the intellectual means to be as successful as their wealthier counterparts. Low income students may rely more heavily on the access to technology and software that libraries generally provide. It’s not a surprise that high schools in more wealthy areas tend offer their students more resources and access to technology, and household technology tends to increase with wealth, so low-income students may need instructional services to get up to speed with their more privileged peers. Community colleges and the libraries within them tend to focus on instruction and reference, with specific collections to practically aid students in their studies. Because many community colleges are accustomed to non-traditional and low-income students, they may have more things in place to assist the population. The more elite 4-year universities may not have these things in place, and may assume that the research and technology skills of incoming students generally will be higher than those entering community colleges, something that puts many low-income and non-traditional students at a disadvantage. The libraries at these institutions can help lessen that divide by offering assistance in basic research and technology skills, and by focusing on information literacy and bibliographic instruction. It’s not surprising that low-income students can be found in higher concentrations at schools with more lenient admissions policies (because of factors including familiarity, locality, affordability, test scores, admissions policies and a lack of resources and
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guidance), and it’s also not surprising that those schools with more lenient admissions policies are generally more affordable. Marx (2011) points out that our traditional admissions process thinking is flawed, and looks at performance over potential. He points out that “We must acknowledge and work to counteract the inherent bias in elite college admissions that favors students who can afford SAT coaching and unpaid internships rather than disadvantage those who must work to help cover family expenses”. While libraries in higher education don’t have a lot of influence in the admissions process; school libraries and public libraries, as well as the librarians who work inside them, can take measures to close the gap. Both can strive to provide free college mentoring and admissions test tutoring, and can do their best (with potentially limited resources) to try and offer as much help in the college admissions process as possible. They can also (again, with limited resources) do their best to provide access to technology so that lowincome students (who may not have access to the internet and other technology outside of the school or public library setting) have adequate access to information and the chance to develop needed technological skills. Educational Theory and the Bigger Picture Carnevale and Strohl (2011) address the fact that over the past several decades college has become one of the only stable ways to ensure a middle-class lifestyle, but because of the economic divide going on within the country and within the higher education system, it’s getting harder and harder to move up within the class structure. People who go to elite 4-year schools have a higher graduation rate, and tend to find jobs faster at a greater rate of pay than those who go to schools within the bottom half of the hierarchy. In this sense, it’s easier to make money if you have money.
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Both Carnevale and Strohl (2011) and Marx (2011) emphasize the idea that the issue runs deeper than the fact that wealthy people tend to attend wealthy schools. Carnevale and Strohl (2011) discuss the idea that the problem may be governmental: “Unlike the Europeans, we in the United States prefer to rely on education rather than a redistributive welfare state to smooth the contradictions between democratic equality and market-driven inequality”. They go on to argue that this approach may not be sound or rooted in fairness: “In a society where people start out in unequal circumstances, educational attainment measured by test scores and grades can partly be the outcome of being born into a family with the right bank account or of the right race.” If education is supposed to be the great equalizer and an imperative part of the American dream, economic inequality within the higher education system makes self reliance harder to obtain. They go on to say that “In other words, the higher-education system we have created to encourage mobility and economic opportunity is at risk of reinforcing class stratification.” Marx (2011) touches on the idea that by limiting the educational opportunities for the lower class, we’re negatively impacting the country as a whole: “When we favor the advantaged and exclude the talents of the majority of the population, society pays a large price-one our country can ill afford to bear. It means we are educating our future leaders without selecting them from the widest array of ability, without the diverse range of perspectives they need to hone their critical abilities, and in environments whose demographic makeup looks nothing like the diverse world in which these future leaders will actually live and work.”
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Affects on Future Librarians Because members of the low-income population are less likely to go to college and get a four-year degree, it can be argued that even fewer low-income citizens will go on to get a post-secondary degree. The economic disparity evident in the higher education system directly impacts the lack of diversity within the fields that require a secondary education. As librarians, we’re supposed to provide information and access without bias to the members of the community we serve. But if, as these two articles suggest, the diversity of economic background among librarians is slim, we can’t be coming close to representing the populations we serve. Diversity among librarians may be more crucial than it is in other sectors. A diverse library staff will know, intrinsically, how to serve diverse populations. Having people on staff that come from different socio-economic backgrounds will better relate to users, and be in touch with their needs. Having a diverse staff also raises creativity, because having different backgrounds creates different thinking patterns, and when those are combined, it can lead to innovation. Library programs aren’t known for their diversity. The majority of students have always been white, middle-class women. But users of libraries are as diverse as the communities they serve, a disconnect that will only get more substantial as other communities become more diverse. It’s critical that librarians can relate to the population they serve. Conclusion Higher education is important in today’s economic environment. Those with secondary education tend to make more money than those who don’t, but those who
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come from lower-income backgrounds are underrepresented. This represents a fault with the way the system works, and puts those who aren’t wealthy at a disadvantage. While there are many contributing factors to the economic divide in higher education, libraries can do their part to represent and serve all the members of their community, as well as help prepare them for the next step in their educational journey. A lack of economic diversity within higher education also leads to less diverse library profession, which could be detrimental to the community it serves.
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Carnevale, A.P. & Strohl, J. (September 25, 2011 Sunday). Our Economically Polarized College System: Separate and Unequal. The Chronicle of Higher Education, Retrieved from http://www.lexisnexis.com.libproxy.uncg.edu/hottopics/lnacademic. Marx. A.W. (September 25, 2011 Sunday ). The Economic Divide on Campuses Is a National Tragedy. The Chronicle of Higher Education, Retrieved from http://www.lexisnexis.com.libproxy.uncg.edu/hottopics/lnacademic