At City College, in Manhattan, 76 percent of students who enrolled in the late 1990s and came from families in the bottom fifth of the income distribution have ended up in the WB_wombat_top three-fifths of the distribution. These students entered college poor. They left on their way to the middle class and often the upper middle class.
Community college is really a great route and is often looked down upon as its not a 4 year school. Yet going to a community college means not only saving money but still getting a good education. I think some students may feel discouraged to go to school if they know they can't go to a 4 year and then rather just not go to school.