This study examines the critical role that teachers and institutional agents play in increasing access to college for low-income students. The study is an analysis of 23 student interviews of seniors from an urban high school. The researcher interviewed students at the end of their senior years who did not plan on going to college, planned on attending two year institutions, and planned on attending four year institutions. The researcher interviewed over thirty teachers and institutional agents. The researcher also conducted a survey with 105 of the students and 23 of the school adults at the school. The results suggest that most of the students who went to college said they had an influential teacher or institutional agent that they felt "knew" them, meaning they could share their thoughts and feelings with this adult, who then told them in a one-on-one conversation that they should go to college. Other important characteristics of this relationship were trust, pushing, and helping. The institutional agents played an important role in helping provide students social capital, as this relationship often mediated how the students navigated the college choice process, and accessed emotional support and institutional resources. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]