This broad view of the world’s economic reality suggests that elite universities should not be asking, “Why do we have so few low-income students?” but “How do we have so many wealthy ones?” There is no relationship between being intelligent and inheriting wealth. Therefore, the only logical explanation for the disproportionate abundance of wealthy people in elite colleges and universities is that these private institutions consistently overvalue the performance and qualifications of youth from higher income brackets. We “poor” smart students are not rare exotic fruit, which can only be discovered through adventurous colonial missions. The presumption by some university administrators and admissions committees that we are “hard to find” may be related to stereotypes about relatively low income families that are routinely circulated in American popular culture (see for example the reality television programs Jersey Shore, Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, or Maury).

The Myth that 'the Best' Is the Best for Everybody

During my time as a student and now professor, I have met many youth from average-income families who are driven to succeed by a desire to address the systemic economic inequalities with which their parents and neighbors struggle. For some, using their diplomas to win high-paying positions that will enable them to support their immediate families is sufficient. Others believe participating in social movements that advance economic justice is the most effective way for them to help.

Elite universities like Yale, which are considered to be “the best,” do not necessarily provide the most competitive mentorship, rigorous curriculum, and financial support to students who are committed to social justice. Young people from communities that are marginalized within these institutions often face exhausting battles. Some professors can be disdainful of their real-world experience and styles of expression. Extra-curricular activities, such as study abroad programs in developing countries and service opportunities in everyday neighborhoods that are labeled “poor” by universities, alienate average-income students by aiming to provide “exposure” and “sensitivity” for students who are presumably from wealthy backgrounds and presumably have no familial ties to Latin America, Eastern Europe, Africa, or the Caribbean.

Schools that are lower ranked and less rich but more committed to social justice—such as Antioch, Berea, or my current employer The New School—may be the actual bests for the normal-income student who is committed to economic equality. In their curriculum and admissions practices, these institutions of higher learning have centered concerns about systemic economic inequality. The experiences and perspectives of average income families are not rarefied but robustly reflected in these schools’ ethos and practice. The diversity of achievements by average income youth who navigate many obstacles to obtain an education are fully recognized. These are some of the steps elite universities like Yale, Amherst, and Vassar need to take in order to see their vision of an economically democratic student body become a reality.

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