Our students face many risk factors once they leave us — peers who do not always encourage good decisionmaking, bureaucratic educational institutions, employers who do not always treat them well, family members who do not necessarily believe in their ability to succeed, and a society that has too little regard for low -
income black teens.
If being a child in a low -
income family mattered primarily because
teens were forced to work or could not afford college, the government could reduce the
black - white gap in educational attainment through more - generous tuition or
income - assistance programs.