Category Archives: Class and Education

Class(room) Warfare

Posted on April 15, 2019 by

The actress Felicity Huffman—along with 13 other parents charged in the college admissions scandal—entered plea deals last week, putting pressure on actress Lori Laughlin and her husband, designer Mossimo Giannulli, to do the same. Prosecutors are hinting that if Laughlin … Continue reading →

Posted in Class and Education, Class and the Media, Contributors, Issues, Kathy M. Newman, Labor and Community Activism | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Bargaining for the Common Good Comes of Age

Posted on March 11, 2019 by

The week-long strike by the United Teachers of Los Angeles (UTLA) in January 2019 marked the most significant struggle yet in a movement by teachers and other public-sector workers called Bargaining for the Common Good.  By striking over a long … Continue reading →

Posted in Class and Education, Contributors, Guest Bloggers, Issues, Labor and Community Activism | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Working-Class Precarity: An Education

Posted on January 21, 2019 by

The teacher who most influenced me was Raphael Samuel, one of the leading social historians of his time – though I didn’t know that when I studied with him.  Raph, as we came to know him, had chosen to work … Continue reading →

Posted in Class and Education, Class and the Media, Contributors, Issues, Tim Strangleman, Work | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

First-Gen or Working-Class?

Posted on October 8, 2018 by

Working-class studies scholars often complain about how some researchers use a single aspect of people’s lives – most often education — to determine their social class. Anytime we define class in one way, we oversimplify it and miss important insights … Continue reading →

Posted in Class and Education, Contributors, Issues, Sherry Linkon | Tagged , | 6 Comments

Middle-Class Influence vs. Working-Class Character

Posted on September 10, 2018 by

“Jesse” is one of a cohort of 80 students sociologist Jessica Calarco observed from the 3rd through the 5th grades and then revisited in middle school for her new book, Negotiating Opportunities: How the Middle Class Secures Advantages in School.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Class and Education, Contributors, Issues, Jack Metzgar, Working-Class Culture | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

We Need a Working-Class Ranking System

Posted on May 14, 2018 by

Lists that rank U.S. colleges are everywhere these days.  You can find images of the “most beautiful” or “safest” campuses on Facebook.  Every major news magazine seems to have its own rankings system.  All of this started with US News … Continue reading →

Posted in Class and Education, Contributors, Guest Bloggers, Issues, Understanding Class | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Low Cotton: A Class on Class

Posted on February 19, 2018 by

I have never picked cotton, but my mother has. She is the youngest of seven children, one of only two who finished high school. My granddaddy was a Scots-Irish sharecropper plowing Georgia red clay. He never owned his own home. … Continue reading →

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