Balance (1965 - 1990)
Project Access (1968-1971)
This College Board program funded by the Ford Foundation aimed at identifying talented inner city youth. The College Board administered the PSAT to approximately 70,000 students in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C. The test information and biographical sketches of the young people were sent to colleges, universities, and scholarship sponsors for recruitment purposes.
While the aim of Project Access was to increase the access of minority youth to higher education, the project also raised a number of questions about efforts on behalf of minority and low-income students.
After its first year, Project Access focused on answering the following questions:
- What other or better techniques are there to identify economically disadvantaged youths?
- How can the College Board identify youths who have not achieved because of their backgrounds but would succeed if given appropriate or special preparation for higher education?
- Are there other characteristics that would predict college success other than those used traditionally (such as high school grades and test scores)?
- How can this information be disseminated to schools and colleges so that it will lead to increased participation of minority and low-income youths?
