Access is key to achieving an educated citizenry and maximizing human capital. It is equally important to ask "access to what?" While most of the world catches up to American higher education, the U.S. is in the midst of a shakeout of traditional residential colleges and universities. The question is not whether the status quo should be supported and the myriad of institutions that have passed the tipping point of sustainability should be saved or not, but rather what should replace them? A shrinking population of traditional college students is frequently cited as the cause for this shakeout, but the author argues that the real culprit is the inability to realign cost structures and business practices with economic realities. The question for policymakers should not be which approach to higher education offers the lowest cost, but rather, what is the return on investment for both the individual and the larger community. Given resource realities, choices will have to be made and those choices should not be restricted by tradition or cost alone. Addressing the higher education needs of the nation going forward will require multiple approaches, all with varied costs and benefits. The challenge is to be strategic in the funding of higher education in a way that both increases participation rates and avoids inadvertently creating greater equity gaps or class distinctions. Access to "what" matters for social mobility, equity and the overall economic health of the nation.