Social Class on Campus: Theories and Manifestations (review)

In discussions of college student development, social class is too often neglected. This divisive topic can seem cumbersome in a field of study so concerned with diversity, and, as Will Barratt writes of his book Social Class on Campus: Theories and Manifestations, "This is not a book about diversity. This is a book about class. Diversity is about how we can all live and work together. Class is about what separates and divides us" (p. xiv). The book, however, leaves little room for the oversight of social class to continue, for in it Barrett provides a thorough exploration of the impact of social class on the lives and experiences of college students in a manner that is straightforward and a style that is readily accessible. The book's 16 chapters are divided into two parts, the first titled "Understanding Social Class" and the second called "Manifestations of Social Class."

Class is more than money. Class is identity. Class is income and wealth. Class is capital. Class is education. Class is prestige. Class is occupation. Class is culture. Class is a system. Class is privilege and oppression. Class is role. These are the analytical frames introduced in chapter one within which readers are invited to consider social class on campus. Also in chapter 1 Barrett tells "a tale of five students" (p. 14) each from different social classes that serve to shape very different student experiences of higher education. This tale, revisited throughout the book along with the stories of several other students, serves as a portal through which the abstract, complex, and complicated concept of social class becomes intelligible.

The tone for Social Class on Campus is set when the author writes in his introductory comments, "I am at heart a classroom teacher and a discussion facilitator" (p. xiv). Though suitable for "anyone interested in how class mediates relationships in higher education," the contents of this book are best comprehended in facilitated discussion. To this end, each chapter contains a suggested experience (e.g. Write a personal classography. What is your social class story?), a set of reflection questions (e.g. Can people change their social class, either up or down?), and a set of discussion questions (e.g. What is the majority class group on your campus?), all intended to raise awareness and understanding of social class as an important issue in the lives of readers, in the lives of colleges and universities, and in the lives of students.

Chapter 2 briefly reviews historical perspectives and key terms, while chapter 3 addresses commonly held beliefs and myths about social class, such as "Education is the key to upward mobility" and "You can't separate class from ethnicity." Chapter 4 discusses the idea of "class passing" and the three class identities each of us holds: our social class of origin, our current felt social class, and our attributed social class, or that which is assigned to us by others. Chapter 5 conveys the experience of a student from the majority class on campus, which includes students who "are second-, third-, or fourth-generation students . . . [whose] parents both work . . . [and whose] families are in the upper 20% of income and education in the country" (pp. 73-74). Chapter 6 presents the experience of a minority class student on campus, which includes students from lower class backgrounds as well as students of the wealthy elite. Chapter 7 begins, "As each person has a social class, so does each campus" (p. 119), and employs the lens of environmental theory to further the point. Each campus has a social class human aggregate, a social class physical environment, a social class organizational environment, and a social class constructed environment. This brings to a close the first part of the book.

The second part of the book, "Manifestations of Social Class," revisits each of the theoretical lenses introduced in chapter 1 as a chapter in and of itself. Although chapters 8 through 13 range in length from just 4 to 10 pages, they...