Dive Brief:
-
States have cut higher ed spending by an average of 17% since 2007, a new report by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found.
-
While some states have begun increasing their spending again, only four — North Dakota, Montana, Wisconsin and Wyoming — have surpassed pre-recession spending levels.
- To compensate, institutions have raised tuition by 33% in the same timeframe.
Dive Insight:
The decline in overall state funding comes at a time in which institutions are working to recover from the effects of a recession on multiple levels. Endowments took a hit during the recession, just as other investments tanked with the market crash, and investors scaled back donations during the same period.
Part of the issue, the report found, is that with more students enrolled in higher ed, states have to increase overall spending to maintain the same levels of per-student funding; the report noted an 8.1% increase in enrollment in the same time period. And correctional facilities and healthcare costs are increasingly competing for the limited state funds, the report found.
But there was one upside for college affordability: Though the sticker price of college has skyrocketed, the authors found, the net price after grants and other aid is at a lower average than it was pre-recession.