Hudson Baird

Paul Tough has done it again. Just as Michael Lewis has a knack for explaining complex topics through relatable story lines, Tough has tackled a complex and inter-related journey of college access and completion and made the nuances and constraints accessible for the reader. While plenty of books tackle specific issues (debt, admissions, post-traditional students, standardized tests) Tough brings them together in a building narrative, and then reinforces their importance with a focus on the students who live the struggles and consequences of a system increasingly ill-equipped to serve those who would benefit most from a degree. If you've wondered if a degree still matters, why you can't work your way through college anymore, or how the very structures that once (largely through the GI Bill) expanded social mobility now perpetuate inequity, then this book is for you. Read, reflect, then find someone you know to walk alongside as they navigate their way towards a degree.