Moving Up Without Losing Your Way: The Ethical Costs of Upward Mobility
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- Create Date：2021-04-28 16:31:10
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Jennifer Morton
- ISBN：0691216932
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Summary
The dilemmas faced by disadvantaged college students seeking upward mobility and what educators can do to help these students flourish
Upward mobility through higher education has been an article of faith for generations of working-class， low-income， and immigrant college students。 While this path usually entails financial sacrifices and hard work， little attention has been paid to the personal compromises such students make as they enter worlds vastly different from their own。 Measuring the true cost of higher education for those from disadvantaged backgrounds， Moving Up without Losing Your Way looks at the ethical dilemmas of upward mobility--the broken ties with family and friends， and the loss of community and identity--faced by students as they strive to earn a successful place in society。 Drawing upon philosophy， social science， personal stories， and interviews， Jennifer Morton reframes the college experience， factoring in not just educational and career opportunities but also essential relationships。 She urges educators to empower students with a new narrative， one that might allow them to achieve social mobility while retaining their best selves。
Upward mobility through higher education has been an article of faith for generations of working-class， low-income， and immigrant college students。 While this path usually entails financial sacrifices and hard work， little attention has been paid to the personal compromises such students make as they enter worlds vastly different from their own。 Measuring the true cost of higher education for those from disadvantaged backgrounds， Moving Up without Losing Your Way looks at the ethical dilemmas of upward mobility--the broken ties with family and friends， and the loss of community and identity--faced by students as they strive to earn a successful place in society。 Drawing upon philosophy， social science， personal stories， and interviews， Jennifer Morton reframes the college experience， factoring in not just educational and career opportunities but also essential relationships。 She urges educators to empower students with a new narrative， one that might allow them to achieve social mobility while retaining their best selves。
Reviews
Carlos
，
Very very powerful message that inspired a lot of self reflection。 One thing to note is that the book is written like a thesis paper: not much flow， over explanation， and repetitiveness。 It can get a little boring but the message remains powerful
Ashley
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Solid theoretical look at the costs and conflict borne by first generation and upwardly mobile students。 Great questions for reflection abs guide to take an honest look at the trade offs to develop ones own ethical narrative。 Leaves questions about implementation and higher Ed’s willingness to change（since most of their recent changes go against the advice outlined ）。
Abdulkadir Shukri
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Interesting book
Colle Owino
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This book makes you realize that money isn't the main issue affecting minorities and disadvantaged groups trying to achieve upward mobility。 This book makes you realize that money isn't the main issue affecting minorities and disadvantaged groups trying to achieve upward mobility。 。。。more
June
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As an immigrant and first generation to attend a college in America， I could relate to a lot of stories in here。 I think the book has great messages and stories that we can learn from， but I think it could have been written better。 Throughout the book， I felt that there were a lot of repetitions and a lot of deferring details of some of the topics。 It also felt that the author was ranting in some parts of the book （perhaps， it’s because of repetitions？）。 Despite its unfavorable writing style， i As an immigrant and first generation to attend a college in America， I could relate to a lot of stories in here。 I think the book has great messages and stories that we can learn from， but I think it could have been written better。 Throughout the book， I felt that there were a lot of repetitions and a lot of deferring details of some of the topics。 It also felt that the author was ranting in some parts of the book （perhaps， it’s because of repetitions？）。 Despite its unfavorable writing style， i did get out a couple important lessons （reflect on what is important to me and why） from this book， therefore I am glad that I got to read this。 。。。more
James Schisler
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Most people don't understand the searing feeling that comes as one realizes "my life will be fundamentally different from that of my parents"。 And even fewer people talk about that feeling， the way it sneaks up on you at times you should be celebrating， the guilt， the shame， the distance。 But Morton's narrative here picks at this a little bit， and validates the hollowness and the feeling that something irreplaceable has been sacrificed。I identify with the "strivers" Morton discussed here- first Most people don't understand the searing feeling that comes as one realizes "my life will be fundamentally different from that of my parents"。 And even fewer people talk about that feeling， the way it sneaks up on you at times you should be celebrating， the guilt， the shame， the distance。 But Morton's narrative here picks at this a little bit， and validates the hollowness and the feeling that something irreplaceable has been sacrificed。I identify with the "strivers" Morton discussed here- first generation and low income students pushing to improve their life by earning a college degree。 On top of this， working with these students is my job。 So I'm deeply， intimately familiar with the costs that people bear to make it to and through college。 This book stands out because I've never seen or heard anyone discuss those costs。 By analyzing these costs in an ethical framework， Morton offers a unified narrative and lens to look through。Ultimately， Morton lands on suggesting that those who seek to support strivers in minimizing the harm of the ethical costs they pay should focus on creating a "clear eyed ethical narrative" that the strivers can fall back on for guidance。 This narrative should include a sense of what is at the core of the person crafting it， and a sense of what they are willing to sacrifice in pursuit of "moving up" 。 Such a narrative is obviously valuable， and Morton is making an intensely valuable contribution in identifying this as a strategy for keeping the ethical costs manageable。 But， somehow， it falls a bit flat。 I don't know what I'd feel was more rounded- I didn't come into this book looking for policy changes， of course。 This feels like an idea and a strategy in need of supplementing strategies that collectively maximize the impacts of each other。Regardless， I found this to be an insightful， thought provoking read， and I expect many college administrators would as well。 And I would recommend this work to anyone who hopes to better understand the lives of those at the bottom of our hierarchy who strive to make their way through college。 。。。more
Charles
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I was always taught that if I wanted to succeed， I would have to sacrifice。 And there was never any question that such sacrifices would be viewed positively。 After all， it was almost always a question of discipline。 --To succeed academically， you sacrifice TV time， video game time， non-productive socializing。--To succeed athletically， you give up unhealthy foods （and TV time， video games， etc。）What I never thought about is how privileged a perspective this is。 For those who come from economicall I was always taught that if I wanted to succeed， I would have to sacrifice。 And there was never any question that such sacrifices would be viewed positively。 After all， it was almost always a question of discipline。 --To succeed academically， you sacrifice TV time， video game time， non-productive socializing。--To succeed athletically， you give up unhealthy foods （and TV time， video games， etc。）What I never thought about is how privileged a perspective this is。 For those who come from economically depressed backgrounds， achieving academically often involves many costly sacrifices。 Even achieving the goals of upward mobility can in itself be a sacrifice that separates "strivers" from the communities that produced them。 Through dozens of case studies， the author does a fantastic job describing all of the different ways these strivers are forced to make difficult decisions that are rarely experienced by people from middle-class backgrounds。 While not a long book， the seemingly endless examples do get a little bit repetitive as the author offers up one example after another， each with a slightly different slant on the myriad problems of upward mobility。 But the result is an extremely thorough introduction to an ethical conversation that should be on the mind of all teachers/administrators in higher education。 。。。more
Hillary
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required reading for all college access professionals
Nellie
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Morton writes an exceptionally compelling narrative about "strivers" that lose their connection to family， community， maybe even identity， as they move up the socio-economic ladder。 She calls it the ethical costs， which should not be exacted as a condition for a better life。 She also explained the phenomena of codeswitch。 Many of us have at least once in our life have done it。 It's a fascinating human behaviour to which I wish Morton devoted more explanation。 Perhaps some of her themes are much Morton writes an exceptionally compelling narrative about "strivers" that lose their connection to family， community， maybe even identity， as they move up the socio-economic ladder。 She calls it the ethical costs， which should not be exacted as a condition for a better life。 She also explained the phenomena of codeswitch。 Many of us have at least once in our life have done it。 It's a fascinating human behaviour to which I wish Morton devoted more explanation。 Perhaps some of her themes are much written about in other sociology books。 The personal stories that Morton tells， especially of her students， are illuminating。 I wish that she compiled more of those stories （difficult as they may be due to confidentiality）， and tell a more diverse and longitudinal narrative。 Under the heading methodology， Morton stated that she conducted interviews with 28 strivers， but upon reading her book I can only recall the stories of half a dozen。 So what was said in all 28 cases？ This book may have been more enriching if Morton diligently documented their stories and teased out the parallels and contradictions in a systematic way。 On the other hand， Morton devotes a lot of pages describing the ongoing challenges faced by the low-income， inner-city， racialized， immigrant population。 All of this is true， but her writing style and content on this matter are repetitive， to the point that I start to expect the obvious and just want to turn the page。 Interspersing the argument with some data and testimonies would give it more power。 Morton's big criticism of the current college education system in America is that the promise of education （as that of the defunct promise of the American dream） ignores the true cost of upward mobility for low-income students。 Why do some smart young adults from low-income communities not apply to top private universities， even when there is generous financial aid？ Monton does a huge service in explaining one aspect of this dilemma。 If we can't grapple with this， we are far from discussing inequality in general in the country。 。。。more
Mell Aguiar
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Wow， this book was great。 It gets very repetitive， though， but that might be bc I’m familiar w the phenomenon。 Nonetheless she is able to explain it super well in a way thats validating but also extremely depressing。 We’re presented with this idealistic view of the future in which we work hard， cut connections， and go to college for a degree + a good job far away from home， hence the whole “making it out the hood” thing。 LolBut 。。。。。。 is it really that great ？ Like she said， “ethical goods” （int Wow， this book was great。 It gets very repetitive， though， but that might be bc I’m familiar w the phenomenon。 Nonetheless she is able to explain it super well in a way thats validating but also extremely depressing。 We’re presented with this idealistic view of the future in which we work hard， cut connections， and go to college for a degree + a good job far away from home， hence the whole “making it out the hood” thing。 LolBut 。。。。。。 is it really that great ？ Like she said， “ethical goods” （intrinsically good things that give our lives meaning） like relationships that you lose because of upward mobility aren’t just replaceable。 In the whole “striver” process these harsh realities remain repressed for as long as we can handle， as facing it is just too hard。 Ultimately you know 。。。。。。 its time we address poverty from the get go instead of mitigating the effects of it later， as by then the damage is already done， that intergenerational shit w roots in economic depravity already passed on。 Thats a hard thing to admit bc it makes us question our trajectories too much， I guess。 I wonder if these huge structural issues will ever be addressed but thats not a very original thought haha。 Definitely recommend but it might leave you feeling slightly without hope 。。。more
Holli
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No one tells first generation students that aspiring in school to better their lives comes with ethical tradeoffs in the form of losing community， relationships and identity。 The narrative of using education to better oneself and move up the social ladder completely leaves out the social costs these students suffer。 I wish I had this book when I started grad school。 As a first generation student myself， it would have given me the tools to contextualize the changes in my life。 I would have had a No one tells first generation students that aspiring in school to better their lives comes with ethical tradeoffs in the form of losing community， relationships and identity。 The narrative of using education to better oneself and move up the social ladder completely leaves out the social costs these students suffer。 I wish I had this book when I started grad school。 As a first generation student myself， it would have given me the tools to contextualize the changes in my life。 I would have had a method of comprehending why the social dynamics back home were shifting so dramatically and why relationships were becoming so strained seemingly without cause。 I was not prepared for the social trade offs。 。。。more
jeremiah
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The first-generation and low-income college student experience is a socioeconomic issue that has only just started to receive the rigorous philosophical reflection it demands。 Morton's account of the ethical costs of upwardly mobile first-generation college students gets so much right。 For example， as a first-generation college student myself， my parents never discussed ideas or current events with me。 Reading the humanities was my own way of escaping my working class upbringing and the means of The first-generation and low-income college student experience is a socioeconomic issue that has only just started to receive the rigorous philosophical reflection it demands。 Morton's account of the ethical costs of upwardly mobile first-generation college students gets so much right。 For example， as a first-generation college student myself， my parents never discussed ideas or current events with me。 Reading the humanities was my own way of escaping my working class upbringing and the means of cultivating a new sense of self。 However， when I finally did make it to college， I experienced "culture shock": I was extremely quiet in my seminars， since I realized that I had entered a world which many of my peers were prepared for by virtue of coming from families wealthier and better educated than mine。 Everyone seemed to speak about complex ideas with the professors with such ease and familiarity。 My verbal speech， on the other hand， was barely grammatical and my long pauses between words obscured any intelligibility， as was once pointed out to me。 I thought I was an admissions mistake。 Soon I strove to adopt the values and practices of the socioeconomic class with which I was now primarily engaged。 After all， it was the world I'd dreamed for a long time of entering。 However， it came with a cost: I distanced myself further from my working class background， home didn't seem like home anymore， and my parents couldn't understand the kind of life to which I aspired。 （While I'm now a PhD student， this is true to this day， although I think I've finally gotten them to understand what "Philosophy" is。） Moreover， it was an emotional struggle to get my family to glimpse the value of the education I wanted and for them to take the immense financial risk required to make it happen。 It speaks to their character as parents that they risked so much for me to pursue something they themselves barely understood。 Anyway， to see a professional academic philosopher examine the various ways first-generation college students navigate loyalties between their 'home' and 'new' communities and the ethical risks such navigation involves was a validating experience。 There's also wonderful discussion here about the ways in which first-generation college students can challenge the class structure that disadvantaged them。 In sum， as Morton nicely puts it， "for many students the process of upward mobility requires far more than perseverance: it also requires brutal decisions and painful sacrifices， threatens their relationships with those who matter most to them， and destabilizes their sense of identity and belonging。 The story of upward mobility isn't just one of gains; it is also one of losses。" While there is still much more to be said about this topic， I'm grateful for the rich groundwork Morton lays out in this book。 。。。more
Sharad Pandian
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Jennifer Morton's argument is that for students from disadvantaged backgrounds， apart from the economic and cultural barriers that prevent them from using education for social mobility， there are also often "ethical costs" such transitions involve， costs to "relationships with family and friends， our connection to our communities， and our sense of identity" （4）。 As someone who was a first-generation student from Peru， she has credibility in discussing these issues， and by drawing from her experi Jennifer Morton's argument is that for students from disadvantaged backgrounds， apart from the economic and cultural barriers that prevent them from using education for social mobility， there are also often "ethical costs" such transitions involve， costs to "relationships with family and friends， our connection to our communities， and our sense of identity" （4）。 As someone who was a first-generation student from Peru， she has credibility in discussing these issues， and by drawing from her experience teaching and interviewing students at CCNY （the "Harvard of the poor"）， she produces an insightful examination of issues involved。 This is not sociology - the interviews are more for inspiration and clarity - but she draws extensively from sociological studies， making it a philosophical study that's actually useful and relevant， instead of well-meaning but insipid armchair thought。She doesn't see her role as providing answers to difficult questions （there's too much contextual variation， plus students ultimately need to make decisions themselves）。 Instead she wishes to advocate for these "strivers" to be "clear-eyed" about what's at stake， what costs they can expect， and what they should take upon themselves （both immediately and in the long-term）。 Her ultimate goal seems to be to help "craft an honest， alternative narrative of upward mobility" （124）。This clear-eyed ethical narrative is characterized by three central features: it is honest about the ethical trade-offs involved in striving， it clearly situates these choices in a specific socioeconomic and historical context， and it is ethical in that it encourages strivers to reflect on what is valuable and meaningful to them and on the impact they want to make on the world。 （121）This narrative provides not answers， but rather a framework that can help strivers confront the questions they will face in a reflective way。 Such an approach involves putting together all of the elements we have discussed thus far: recognizing those aspects of one’s life that are valuable and meaningful but might be undermined in the process of moving up， situating those costs in the proper socioeconomic context in a way that recognizes the extent to which they disproportionately burden strivers， navigating the competing pressures on one’s identity that upward mobility creates， and resisting one’s complicity in a society that is unfairly structured so as to compound the hurdles already faced by those who are most disadvantaged。 （124） An example to illustrate:For example， the fact that childcare is expensive and difficult to procure in this country means that some strivers find themselves having to choose between providing childcare for their families and graduating on time。 A hopeless response to this situation would be to decide that such a striver will ultimately fail to graduate and therefore might as well not try。 A delusionally optimistic response would be to encourage this striver to go to college and work hard to achieve her goals without acknowledging what she might be giving up by choosing that path。 The ethical narrative， by contrast， points to a middle road: it helps the striver to acknowledge the potential ethical costs of going to college—how her relationship with her family might be impacted by the decisions she will have to make in order to succeed in that path—but also the potential gains—a college degree will enable her to access opportunities that are likely otherwise unavailable to her family。 The ethical narrative also requires that she understand the ways in which a lack of access to quality childcare plays a role in the challenges she faces and how others who are born into more fortunate circumstances are not subject to the same challenges。 This broadens her perspective。 She can now consider the role she could play in bringing more quality childcare to people growing up in communities like hers once she has attained a measure of socioeconomic success。 This contribution might be as simple as voting for candidates who make this one of their policy priorities， or it might involve a much more profound grassroots engagement with this issue。 It is here that she can find hope not just for herself， but for others like her。 Hope becomes more than an empty promise; it is born from an honest assessment of the challenges she faces and the sacrifices she will have to make。 From the reflection at the heart of the ethical narrative， the striver can see her life more clearly。 And from that clarity is born a more honest version of a hopeful narrative。 （148） Why we should care about this:I am not suggesting that a clear-eyed ethical narrative will eliminate the feelings of conflict and struggle that strivers are liable to experience on the path of upward mobility， though some might take comfort from the clarity they have gained。 Nor am I suggesting that this narrative will minimize the ethical costs strivers face， though it might help some thread the delicate needle between their two worlds。 Nor am I suggesting that such a narrative would dramatically alter a striver’s situation， though it may encourage strivers to act in ways that play a role in making our society more just in the long run。 The reason to embrace a clear-eyed ethical narrative is simple— it is more honest。 It is more truthful in its recognition that in the path of upward mobility there is the potential for loss， that what might be lost is genuinely valuable， and that the responsibility for that loss extends far beyond individual students， their families， or their communities。 （148-9） 。。。more
Christa
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I loved this book。 As someone who has worked in higher education for 10+ years， I am admittedly burnt out on conversations about at-risk students， barriers， and obstacles to student success。 Not because these issues are not important， but because we seem to have the same conversations over and over again， and haven't found many good strategies to address those barriers。Morton offers a new perspective on student success and the complex emotional landscape students who commit to the holy grail - u I loved this book。 As someone who has worked in higher education for 10+ years， I am admittedly burnt out on conversations about at-risk students， barriers， and obstacles to student success。 Not because these issues are not important， but because we seem to have the same conversations over and over again， and haven't found many good strategies to address those barriers。Morton offers a new perspective on student success and the complex emotional landscape students who commit to the holy grail - upper mobility through education - must grapple with。 Morton's research examines the emotional and social toll that is exacted on students， their families， and communities through the interpersonal sacrifices they must make to pursue education and improve their circumstances。 Incorporating personal accounts from her students， her research is both informative and relatable。 It also offers support professionals， teachers， and administrators in higher education a different way to think about student success that extends beyond financial or academic needs and incorporates the emotional and psychological challenges that are inextricably tied to the willful struggle to change one's life。 。。。more
Elizabeth
，
This is such an important topic， and the book meets the importance of the topic by considering the myriad costs associated with upward mobility and even providing some smart suggestions for how， as administrators and instructors， we can work to mitigate them。 Most important， Morton advocates realism and transparency when mentoring and teaching low income students。 While this seems obvious， the examples she provides from her own experience illustrate how difficult it is to be frank and forthright This is such an important topic， and the book meets the importance of the topic by considering the myriad costs associated with upward mobility and even providing some smart suggestions for how， as administrators and instructors， we can work to mitigate them。 Most important， Morton advocates realism and transparency when mentoring and teaching low income students。 While this seems obvious， the examples she provides from her own experience illustrate how difficult it is to be frank and forthright alongside the importance of being so。 。。。more
Mills College Library
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306。85097 M8898 2019
James Lang
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