Diverted Dream: Community Colleges and the Promise of Educational Opportunity in America, 1900-1985

The two-year or "community" college was begun at the turn of the century as a means of offering limited-income students the opportunity to attend college. In the past two decades, however, the community college has experienced a profound change, shifting its emphasis from liberal arts transfer courses to terminal vocational programs. With two thirds of community college students enrolled in vocational programs, the authors argue, the promise of equal educational opportunity for all is seriously undermined. Long overdue, this landmark bookthe first full-scale examination of the place of the two-year college in American societysheds critical light on what is distinctive about American education, and American society itself.