This edited collection presents a compilation of personal essays on the role of public higher education in the lives of fourteen social scientists who are graduates of the Graduate Center, the doctoral granting institution at the City University of New York, the nation's largest public urban university.

Deborah Gambs, Borough of Manhattan Community College, CUNY, USARose M. Kim, Borough of Manhattan Community College, CUNY, USAAyse Akalin, Istanbul Technical University, TurkeyGrace Cho, College of Staten Island, CUNY, USADeirdre Conlon, University of Leeds, UKMelissa Ditmore, Independent Scholar& Consultant on Rights-Based Research and Programming, USALaura Fantone, University of California, Berkeley, USAJean Halley, College of Staten Island, CUNY, USAAngelique Harris, Marquette University, USARobin Isserles, Borough of Manhattan Community College, CUNY, USAHosu Kim, College of Staten Island, CUNY, USAJennifer Pinkney Pastor, Borough of Manhattan Community College, CUNY, USAMichelle Ronda, Marymount Manhattan College, USAAlia Tyner-Mullings, New Community College, CUNY, USA

1. Introduction; Deborah S. Gambs and Rose M. Kim PART I: LEARNING TO BE CRITICAL 2. The 'Children of the Whole People' Can Be Educated; Michelle Ronda 3. Taking Refuge in the Public University: From Harvard to CUNY; Grace M. Cho 4. The Personal is Global, the Political is Communal, the Rest is Teaching and Mentoring; Laura Fantone 5. Reflections On My Public Education; Angelique Harris 6. Network Analysis: Personal Connections Within and Across Academies in NYC; Melissa Hope Ditmore PART II: BUILDING CARING COMMUNITIES 7. The Accidental Scholar: Overcoming the Odds and Succeeding through CUNY; Jennifer Pastor 8. Start Over; Start Again; Hosu Kim 9. Creating Caring Communities at the Graduate Center; Robin G. Isserles 10. Learning to Ask Life's Big Questions; Rose M. Kim 11. My Not-At-All-Private Metamorphosis: On the Graduate Center of The City University of New York and Public School Spaces; Jean Halley PART III: BECOMING AND STAYING PUBLIC 12. Striving to Stay Public; Alia Tyner Mullings 13. Becoming Public; Deirdre Conlon 14. An Open University: Taking the Experimental Path; Deborah S. Gambs 15. An International Student's Reflections on the CUNY Years: Far Away, So Close; Ayse Akalin