Developing Scholars: Race, Politics, and the Pursuit of Higher Education

In Developing Scholars: Race, Politics, and the Pursuit of Higher Education, Domingo Morel examines the little-known efforts state governments undertook to create college access programs for “disadvantaged students” in the 1960s. Relying on historical analysis and qualitative and quantitative methods, the book challenges conventional wisdom by showing how the urban uprisings of the 1960s created the political conditions that led to the formation of these programs. Moreover, through a case study analysis, the book shows how protest has been instrumental in the maintenance of a college access program. These findings help expand our understanding of the role of protest, including violent protest, in the process of policymaking and policy maintenance. The book also argues that these programs are part of the broader history of affirmative action policy in the United States. However, while the conventional views of affirmative action policies are focused on the “identification” of high-achieving students of color to attend elite institutions of higher education, these programs represent a community-centered approach to affirmative action, based on a logic of developing scholars, who can be supported at their local public institutions of higher education. Finally, the book also reveals that in response to the college expansion efforts of the 1960s, hidden forms of restriction emerged that have significantly affected students of color. These restrictions, like secondary admissions processes to enter specific majors and more stringent credentialing requirements to enter the professions, have been shielded from public scrutiny and represent barriers that prevent higher education from meeting its promise of addressing inequality.