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Voices from the Road

Over eight days this summer we drove from Minneapolis to New Orleans, talking about college with Americans along the way.

We wanted to learn how higher education intersects with their lives — whether they have a degree, are pursuing a credential, or never had any interest in either. We also wanted to hear about the role colleges are playing, or should be playing, in their communities and understand more about what’s really fueling the growing resentment toward these institutions in our country.

What jumped out to us in our dozens of conversations was how, for just about everyone we spoke with, college was about utility, not at all about prestige. No one talked about “elite” colleges. The Ivy League never came up. And Varsity Blues, the admissions scandal that got all the headlines earlier this year? No one mentioned it.

At the same time, we noticed, college was everywhere. Drive through communities in America, with your eyes peeled for the impact of higher ed, and you see how it shapes the landscape. Universities are mentioned on countless highway exit signs. They’re marketed on billboards. They take up prime real estate.

Stories about college were right below the surface. We just needed to be listening for them. We never started out by saying to someone, “So, tell us how you feel about college.” Instead, we asked about the roller derby, or about the Gateway Arch, or how long they’d owned this deli, or what was hard about being a tattoo artist.

And invariably, within just a few minutes, they’d mention college.

It wasn’t the college that often gets talked about in national conversations, though. It was the community college Eddie Tanner is going to go to next year after he saves up enough money for a car. The women’s college Ann Dees attended in the 1970s that allowed her to come back home to become a librarian. The college Dave McCaddon never went to because he was too busy riding his motorcycle around the country and jumping out of airplanes with the Army.

Here are the stories of some of the people we met.

Posted inVoices from the Road

An Exuberant Celebration For a Beloved Townie

by Scott Smallwood and Sara Hebel August 28, 2019August 28, 2019

A parade down the streets of Oxford, Miss., celebrated one man — and how he symbolized the best of the Velvet Ditch.

Posted inVoices from the Road

Where College Takes a Back Seat to Bigger Concerns

by Sara Hebel August 28, 2019August 28, 2019
Posted inVoices from the Road

Resilience After a Tough Beginning

by Sara Hebel August 27, 2019August 28, 2019
Posted inVoices from the Road

From Apprentice to Master

by Scott Smallwood August 27, 2019August 27, 2019
Posted inVoices from the Road

A Librarian Worried About Higher Ed’s Liberal Agenda

by Sara Hebel August 27, 2019August 27, 2019
Posted inVoices from the Road

Saving Up to Get to Community College

by Scott Smallwood August 26, 2019August 27, 2019
Posted inVoices from the Road

What I Learned From an Old Neighbor

by Sara Hebel August 26, 2019August 26, 2019
Posted inVoices from the Road

Searching for a Stable, Comfortable Life

by Scott Smallwood August 25, 2019August 25, 2019
Posted inVoices from the Road

A Townie Turns Teaching Assistant

by Sara Hebel August 25, 2019August 25, 2019
Posted inVoices from the Road

‘You Need Life Experience Either Way’

by Scott Smallwood August 25, 2019August 25, 2019

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