This book is the result of a series of studies conducted in several historically black colleges from 1964 to 1970. With a focus that changed from a study of activists to a study of students in an institutional context, the book is considered to aim at revealing and clarifying the concerns and dilemmas of black students during an uneasy period when many questions are being raised about the relevance of education. A first purpose of the book is to examine the relationship between relevant identity goals and the traditional academic goals of higher education. A second purpose is to present data gathered from questionnaires and interviews with several thousand black students that either counter common expectations or fill the void of information about black students. Separated into three parts, major topics addressed include individual achievement, collective achievement, and how the two are polarized, independent, or integrated. Data presented are said to document the extraordinary commitment of black students and their families to education. (Author/AM)