Speaking of Race and Class: The Student Experience at an Elite College

In Speaking of Race and Class, the follow-up volume to her groundbreaking Race and Class Matters at an Elite College, Elizabeth Aries completes her four-year study of diversity at a prestigious liberal arts college. Here, the 58 students--affluent, lower-income, black, and white--that Aries has interviewed since they were Amherst freshmen provide a complete picture of what and how each group learned about issues of race and class.

Aries presents the students' personal perceptions of their experiences. She reveals the extent to which learning from diversity takes place on campus, and examines the distinct challenges that arise for students living in this heterogeneous community. Aries also looks more broadly at how colleges and universities across the country are addressing the challenges surrounding diversity. Speaking of Race and Class testifies to the programming and practices that have proven successful.

Elizabeth Aries is Professor of Psychology at Amherst College. She is the author of Men and Women in Interaction: Reconsidering the Differences; Adolescent Behavior: Readings and Interpretations; and Race and Class Matters at an Elite College (Temple).

Richard Berman is an independent scholar and singer/songwriter who has released six CDs of original folk music.