The Source of the River: The Social Origins of Freshmen at America's Selective Colleges and Universities

(Paperback)

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Description

Documents the benefits of affirmative action for minority students, their communities, and the nation at large. This book investigates the roots of minority underperformance in selective colleges and universities. It explains how such factors as neighborhood, family, peer group, and early schooling influence the academic performance of students.

Reviews

"This is scholarship of the first order, a study that will influence thinking about our society for the next generation."--Jay Mathews, Washington Monthly "This is a beautifully written book. Each word is so carefully chosen and the style so limpid that the text is a pleasure to read... In short, this is a book that should be bought and read by every serious student of education."--Terence Kealey, The Times Higher Education Supplement "This is a very valuable contribution to the sociological study of access to American higher education by ethnic minorities. It also contains useful information for campus personnel and academic staff... [T]his is how social science should be written... This book is highly relevant to those academic staff concerned with meaningful access for all to higher education."--Gerald Postiglione, Educational Review

Author Bio

Douglas S. Massey is Henry G. Bryant Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs at Princeton University. Camille Z. Charles is Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania. Garvey F. Lundy is Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Florida. Mary J. Fischer is Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Connecticut.