CTCL (Colleges That Change Lives, Inc) was founded as a result of a book of the same name—Colleges That Change Lives, researched and written by retiredNew York Times education editor, journalist, and longtime student advocate Loren Pope. Mr. Pope selected the colleges featured in his first book long before the CTCL non-profit organization was formed. Member schools have never paid any fees to Mr. Pope or his publisher to be included in his books: the selections were solely based on the independent judgment and recognized expertise of Mr. Pope himself.