This first history of nontraditional education in America covers the span from Benjamin Franklin's Junto to community colleges. It aims to unravel the knotted connections between education and society by focusing on the voluntary pursuit of knowledge by those who were both older and more likely to be gainfully employed than the school-age population.

"One hundred years ago, Abraham Flexners report on Medical Education in the United States and Canada helped establish the modern paradigm of premedical and medical education. Barr's research finds the system of premedical education that evolved to be a poor predictor of subsequent clinical competency and professional excellence, while simultaneously discouraging many students from under represented minority groups or economically disadvantaged backgrounds from pursuing a career as a physician. Analyzing more than fiftyyears of research, Barr shows that many of the best prospects are not being admitted to medical schools. with long-term adverse consequences for the U.S. medical profession." --Book Jacket.