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# The Years That Matter Most
- URL: https://www.philsimon.com/the-years-that-matter-most/
- Published: 2019-11-11T19:28:08.000Z
- Updated: 2025-07-02T18:35:37.000Z
- Description: A review of Paul Tough's new book
- Author: Phil Simon
- Tags: Book Reviews, Higher Education, Ethics, Teaching, #no-crop, #not-too-tall

Paul Tough's book [*The Years That Matter Most: How College Makes or Breaks Us*](https://amzn.to/2X5ux2L?ref=philsimon.com) paints a decidedly mixed picture of how higher ed works. For some, it's the ticket to a better life. For others, though, it's a high-risk gamble that may well not pay off. If you think that race and class complicate matters, trust your instincts.

I particularly enjoyed his tale of [David Laude](https://twitter.com/laude%5Fdavid?lang=en&ref=philsimon.com) at UT - Austin. His hard work resulted in real changes in graduation rates—against a backdrop of a clueless Texas governor who shamefully believes that [students are customers](https://slate.com/human-interest/2015/05/college-students-are-not-customers-a-political-shorthand-that-needs-to-die.html?ref=philsimon.com). Beyond that, Tough's exploration of the admissions process and its painful economics was especially enlightening. Those with idealistic goals often have to compromise in the fact of fiscal realities.

## Higher Ed: A Mixed Bag

I wish that Tough covered the struggles of well-intentioned faculty attempting to overcome internal politics and constraints. Plenty of intelligent and hard-working faculty eventually pack their bags. (Hence [the rise of quit lit](https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/09/dont-quit-your-day-job/404671/?ref=philsimon.com).) Still, his is a text about students, not professors, and I am much more informed about the mechanics of higher ed than before.

I also like how Tough ends his book: By reminding us of the GI Bill's intent to make education a public good, not a private one. Demagogues and poorly informed politicians would do well to remember this fact.

**Rating:** ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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Click [here](https://www.paultough.com/books/years-that-matter-most/?ref=philsimon.com) for more on the book.