Waubonsee Community College

Lower ed, the troubling rise of for-profit colleges in the new economy, Tressie McMillan Cottom

eng

Includes bibliographical references (pages 195-217) and index

index present

non fiction

Lower ed

bibliography

907190296

Tressie McMillan Cottom

the troubling rise of for-profit colleges in the new economy

"More than two million students are enrolled in for-profit colleges, from the small family-run operations to the behemoths brandished on billboards, subway ads, and late-night commercials. These schools have been around just as long as their bucolic not-for-profit counterparts, yet shockingly little is known about why they have expanded so rapidly in recent years--during the so-called Wall Street era of for-profit colleges. In Lower Ed Tressie McMillan Cottom--a bold and rising public scholar, herself once a recruiter at two for-profit colleges--expertly parses the fraught dynamics of this big-money industry to show precisely how it is part and parcel of the growing inequality plaguing the country today. McMillan Cottom discloses the shrewd recruitment and marketing strategies that these schools deploy and explains how, despite the well-documented predatory practices of some and the campus closings of others, ending for-profit colleges won’t end the vulnerabilities that made them the fastest growing sector of higher education at the turn of the twenty-first century. And she doesn't stop there. With sharp insight and deliberate acumen, McMillan Cottom delivers a comprehensive view of postsecondary for-profit education by illuminating the experiences of the everyday people behind the shareholder earnings, congressional battles, and student debt disasters. The relatable human stories in Lower Ed--from mothers struggling to pay for beauty school to working class guys seeking "good jobs" to accomplished professionals pursuing doctoral degrees--illustrate that the growth of for-profit colleges is inextricably linked to larger questions of race, gender, work, and the promise of opportunity in America. Drawing on more than one hundred interviews with students, employees, executives, and activists, Lower Ed tells the story of the benefits, pitfalls, and real costs of a for-profit education. It is a story about broken social contracts; about education transforming from a public interest to a private gain; and about all Americans and the challenges we face in our divided, unequal society." -- Publisher's description

Introduction: The education gospel -- The real -- The beauty college and the technical college -- Jesus is my backup plan -- When higher education makes cents -- Where credit is due -- Credentials, jobs, and the new economy -- Epilogue

Lower education