In 1965, appalled by the racial disparity with respect to access to higher education, the federal government implemented the Higher Education Act. After more than 40 years of programmatic intervention, gaps persist. As such, this study analyzes two of the three original HEA programs—Upward Bound and Talent Search—focusing on race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status, examining program effectiveness on a national scale. Based on deformed choices ideology and using a nationally representative data set, the National Education Longitudinal Study, event history analysis is employed to determine the effect of Upward Bound and Talent Search with respect to college attendance rates. Both hazard and risk ratios are used to determine the interaction between program participation and race/ethnicity. Program participation significantly benefits low-SES African American and impoverished Hispanic students, providing college attendance opportunities equivalent to that of average-SES White students. Once the school effect on the hazard function was taken into consideration, the benefit of program participation for African American and Hispanic students increased further. Future research is required to ensure effective use of appropriations, while implementation is extended to the masses of low-SES African American and Hispanic students. Directions of future research and policy implications are discussed further.
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