Affirmative Action in Postsecondary Educational Settings: The Historic Nexus of Meritocracy and Access in US Higher Education

Abstract

Access to American colleges and universities remains one of the most important issues in education. Current research and policy address the concepts of diversity, participation, and achievement in postsecondary settings. Affirmative action has become a flashpoint in this context and investigations. This article examines the intersection of this policy/practice with educational attainment based on meritorious achievement. The article also highlights the confluence of affirmative action and educational mobility for graduating high school students. The aims of this article is three-fold: (1) to frame conceptions of diversity from a historical perspective; (2) to address diversity in relation to educational, social, and economic mobility of a multi-ethnic student populace; and (3) to determine the relation between how students transition from high school to college.