In the Information Era, an individual's most valuable asset is the ability to add intellectual content to the work or process at hand. Increasingly, educational experiences (both formal education and on-the-job training and experience) are the key to an individual's success. While poverty is an issue that challenges all societies, the causes for poverty change from age to age. In the agricultural era, poverty may have been caused by a lack of physical strength or ability; however, in the information age poverty can result from a lack of knowledge and analytical capabilities.

Another key determinant of postsecondary achievement is the family history of the student — did his or her parents graduate from college? Postsecondary prospects are dim even for children with strong academic records, if their parents have not attended college. The low-income status that often accompanies this situation exacerbates the issue, as only 30% to 35% of low-income students in the Metro area will enroll in college.