Policy as Symbol: Title II of the 1944 G.I. Bill

Abstract

The 1944 G.I. Bill is often thought to have democratized higher education in the United States. This paper reviews evidence showing that the G.I. Bill's impact on education enrollments was more limited than is generally recognized. It attributes the gap between the law's perceived and documented effects to the symbolism surrounding postwar educational expansion and concludes by discussing the legacy of the G.I. Bill for contemporary policies in higher education.