Assistance in the 11th hour

by Benjamin L. Castleman

Despite decades of policy interventions to increase college entry among low-income students, substantial disparities in college participation by family income persist. Policy-makers have largely overlooked the summer after high school as an important time period in students' transition to college. During the post-high school summer, students must complete a range of financial and informational tasks prior to college enrollment (e.g. interpreting and acting on financial aid award letters and registering for freshman orientation), yet no longer have access to high school counselors and have...