<li><p>No. Because I did a lot of work with student success and, later, with first generation students, I was actually surprised my last couple of years at how many 1st gen students struggle. It makes sense, but in terms of an automatic assumption, no. I think I became less naive about the impact of SES on academic success, though, while in college.</p></li>
<li><p>Yes, overall, I think so. While A.A. may cheapen admissions to some degree, most students admitted by A.A. are most likely 1st gen students who were simply not as over-prepared for college as their white counterparts. One thing I could see doing that might protect against such a cheapening of college admissions would be to target 1st gen students instead of racial and ethnic minorities, because 1st gen’ers are really the ones at risk and/or unlikely to get into college despite natural abilities (racial and ethnic minorities are very nearly if not just as likely to succeed if their parents have gone to college in the U.S. and, therefore, can guide them along).</p></li>
<li><p>My guess would be that this would vary by university and I am not qualified to answer said question.</p></li>
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<p>Legally:</p>
<li><p>I would have to argue more for the latter. A.A. in its current form has given people an excuse to say that said minorities are less intelligent, less fit, etc., when, in fact, it is questionable as to whether said minorities really need this kind of help unless other factors (such as 1st gen status) are present.</p></li>
<li><p>I would suggest reform as I have mentioned above. Additionally, I think what is really needed is to intervene prior to at-risk/1st gen students’ time to submit applications. That is, we should be intercepting them in middle school (freshmen yr of HS at the latest) and implementing PYD and other after-school/in-school/extracurricular programs to help prepare them for college (and college admissions). If we simply implement A.A.-type programs to “get them in” without also preparing them for the college transition, they are likely to fail (which is something that many student affairs professionals at many universities have brought up). Additionally, programs need to be implemented to inform potential 1st gen students’ parents early on. Admissions counselors have reported that they get a few common frequently asked questions from 1st gen students’ parents – ranging from “what? the SAT? what’s that? my son was supposed to take it last April?!?” to “where will he/she sleep?” to “my daughter said she’s taking 16 units next semester, that seems like a lot; are you sure she’ll be able to handle that?” There is a general lack of understanding amongst these parents because they lack the experience of college. To break that cycle, those parents need to be informed. Additionally, ethnic and language barriers would need to be taken into account throughout such a program.</p></li>
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<p>(Sorry…this happens to have been the topic of a research project I was second author of.)</p>