Advertising is all about promises — the bolder, the better. A new detergent with its super-enhanced formula will leave clothes cleaner and brighter than ever, changing the way you think about laundry. The new application system that more than 80 high-profile public and private colleges announced this fall delivered the same kind of dazzling pitch. The Coalition for Access, Affordability, and Success said it would "recast" the admissions process, making it more "engaged, ongoing and educationally affirming"while helping more low-income and underrepresented-minority students enroll at highly selective colleges. The only thing missing was a jingle. Although the system won’t go live until next year, the debate it has ignited continues. Skeptical enrollment officials, questioning the depth of the group’s commitment to access, have called it a cartel and a charade. Some college counselors see the plan as ill-conceived and misguided. Even a few admissions deans at participating colleges are not sure if their group can deliver on its promises.

November 1, 2015 ・ From Chronicle of Higher Education