Eroding Advances: A Critical Race Theory Analysis of the Higher Education Act 1992 Reauthorization

• In Event: Sheraton Roundtable Session Two
  In Roundtable Session: From First-Generation Students to Mental Health: Critical Policy Analysis Across the Globe (Table 1)

Abstract

With this proposed paper, we analyze the Higher Education Act, specifically its 1992 reauthorization, through the lens of critical race theory’s interest convergence central tenet. This analysis showcases the ways in which the interests of both whites and people of color converged to expand economic and democratic opportunities for both groups; at the same time, however, this convergence created a situation where people of color would be disproportionately and negatively impacted by student loan programs that gradually began to replace access grants in the 1992 reauthorization. As evidence of the negative consequences of this convergence, we point to the disproportionate share of student loan balances, attendance at for-profit institutions, and default rates for people of color.

Authors

• Ashlee Anderson, University of Tennessee
  Presenting Author

• Ross Roberts, University of Tennessee
  Presenting Author