Unit 6: Education in the United States

Education for All

In 1944 Congress passed the Servicemen's Readjustment Act, soon popularly called the "GI Bill of Rights." ("GI" at the time, was a nickname for the American soldier. The nickname came from an abbreviation for "Government Issue"—the uniforms and other articles "issued" to a soldier.) The Act promised financial aid, including aid for higher education, to members of the armed forces after the end of World War II.

The war ended in the following year. The prediction had been that 600 000 war veterans would apply for aid for education. By 1955, more than two million veterans of World War II and of the Korean War had used the GI Bill of Rights to go to college. Many of these veterans were from poor families. 30% were married when they applied for college aid; 10% had children. More than a few had to work part time while they took courses. It was difficult, but these veterans believed that a college degree (which they could not afford on their own) would improve their chances for a good job in the postwar economy. Some went to liberal arts colleges; others to technical and professional institutions. Their outstanding success in all these schools forced everyone connected with higher education to rethink its purpose and goals. Within just a few years, American veterans had changed the image of who should go to college. In postwar America, other groups sought their place on America's campuses, too. The enrollment of women in higher education began to increase. Racial segregation in elementary and secondary education ended, and thus blacks achieved an equal opportunity to get into any college of their choice.

By the end of 1960s, some colleges introduced special plans and programs to equalize educational opportunities—at every level, for all groups. Some of these plans were called "Affirmative Action Programs." Their goal was to make up for past inequality by giving special reference to members of minorities seeking jobs or admission to college. (In the United States, the term "minority" has two meanings, often related: (a) A minority is any ethnic or racial group that makes up a small percentage of the total population; (b) The term also suggests a group that is not the dominant political power.) Some colleges, for example, sponsored programs to help minority students prepare for college while still in high school.

By the 1970s, the United States government stood firmly behind such goals. It required colleges and universities receiving public funds to practice some form of affirmative action. But when colleges began to set quotas (fixed numbers) of minority students to be admitted, many Americans (including minority citizens) protested. They felt that this was another form of discrimination.

Minority Students

As with most (but not all) problems in American public life, the conflict was resolved by change and compromise. Colleges continued to serve the goal of affirmative action—but in less controversial ways. One large university, for example, announced a new policy: It would seek to admit students who would add diverse talents to the student body. It thus dealt with all applicants—minorities included—on a basis that was not restricted to high school performance and entrance tests, but which took into account the talents, voluntary activities and "life experience" of the student. What success did these efforts have? American college students are an increasingly diverse group. In 1987, 54% were women. Women received 51% of the bachelor's and master's degrees awarded that year, and 35% of the doctorates and professional degrees. But not all groups are doing so well.

Smith College—A Private Women's College

Although 59% of the students who graduated from high school in 1988 enrolled in college that same year, only 45% of the African-American high school graduates went on to college. Educators and others are working to increase that percentage.

U.S. colleges and universities are also enrolling a higher percentage of non-traditional students—students who have worked for several years before starting college or students who go to school part-time while holding down a job. In 1987, 41% of college students were 25 years of age or older and 43% were part-time students.

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