<p>Consider the endowments of the various schools, as well as the ages of them. Look at where the funding may come from. Older, more elite colleges have large endowments, and alumni funds may be larger. </p>
<p>Consider the tuition costs of some of these colleges. Many of them cost much more than Elon. One of Elon’s commitments is to keeping costs lower. Colleges may admit some lower income students, but they can not make their ends meet without also having students pay the full cost. This would include admitting students from very high income families. </p>
<p>Some colleges are able to meet full need and others can not. This will affect economic diversity. </p>
<p>Elon’s student body becoming larger and more diverse is a fairly recent initiative on the part of the college. At one point, Elon was a small church affiliated college, and now it is a mid size university with students from all over the US and all backgrounds. Consider that the college made a conscious effort to be accessible to more students by charging less tuition than other private colleges. Eventually as the alumni base grows, it may one day be able to have a larger endowment for scholarships. </p>
<p>I’m not associated with Elon, but I am aware of the college’s growth over the past few years. One fallacy of this article is that the colleges and the endowments are not of equal age and size and the tuition charge is different. Elon could also choose to award more financial aid and raise tuition on par with the other private colleges in time. </p>