THE SOCIA CAPITAL DEFICIT

Folk talks about the "social capital deficit" problem. The idea with this problem is that the underserved populations lack the social connections that help other students bridge the gap from high school to college. Social capital is valuable in itself, but it also serves as a catalyst because it intersects with other benefits people get--cultural, economic or higher education benefits. The idea here is that relationships--with adults, peers, teachers, people who run college access programs--can go a long way to helping those students get information and other benefits. It works out as somewhat of a gateway.