Public colleges and universities are a key driver of social and economic mobility, yet they also face increasingly challenging financial and political environments. In this essay, I discuss four key areas in which state higher education policy can influence student success and equity: the amount of funding provided, funding allocation mechanisms,…

The Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL System), under the governance of its Board of Trustees, operates as a strong public university system with eight distinct, mission-driven- universities, and enhances the quality of life of Mississippians by effectively meeting their diverse educational needs. In so doing, the IHL system will be…

At the conclusion of the 2007-08 academic year, the City of Keene and Keene State College (KSC) began to celebrate the college's 100th anniversary. Keene is the 23,000-person hub of a 70,000-person county in southwestern New Hampshire. The history of a supportive town-gown relationship began prior to the college's founding in 1909. The city had…

Greater accountability in public higher education systems is a fact of life in the current political climate. Increasingly, one form this accountability takes is performance funding, which arises from elected officials' need for assurance that taxpayer funds are not only being invested and used properly but are resulting in desired outcomes at…

Public universities are not for-profit businesses with an easy-to-understand bottom line: their financial reports are not designed to convey information to the public fully or to reflect all the costs of teaching and research. Financial reports do track every dollar in accordance with the accounting rules required by auditors, but they do not…

Maryland's governor, Martin J. O'Malley, didn't get much of his legislative agenda through the General Assembly this year, but he did succeed on one front: preserving enough state aid for the public-university system to stave off a tuition increase for the fourth consecutive year. Like politicians in several states, Mr. O'Malley, a Democrat, made…

Community colleges across the nation appear to be facing a "perfect storm" during which surging enrollments, tepid state funding, and strong accountability forces are colliding to severely threaten access to and completion of postsecondary education and credentials by lower-skilled and low-income students. In the last few years, record enrollments…

With the failure of most of the May 19 ballot measures, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has released additional proposed revisions to the current year (2008-09) and budget year (2009-10) state spending plans. The Governor and Legislature adopted an 18-month spending plan in late February, but that budget now has a $24 billion deficit. The…

The Capital Construction Budget Recommendations and Prioritization 2005-2007 Biennium provides the Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education's funding and priority recommendations on capital construction budget requests from the Nebraska State Colleges, the University of Nebraska, and the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture at…

State spending for higher education in the US grew at the fastest rate during the 2005-2006 fiscal year, allowing most colleges in the nation to regain their financial balance after a series of tight budgets for five years. A new analysis by the Center for the Study of Education Policy, at Illinois State University reported that the total…

Recommendations for appropriations to each public college and university in Alabama are presented by the Alabama Commission on Higher Education in its 1984-1985 unified budget report. After explaining the basis of the recommendations, attention is directed to operating needs for 1984-1985, higher education appropriations for 1983-1984, and funding…

Over the past decade, public universities' expenditures for research and public service activities have increased faster than overall expenditures. This report presents information on direct expenditures for instruction, research, and public service at Illinois public universities during fiscal year 1992 and compares these findings to measures of…

Information on financial aid at public institutions of the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education for 1974-1975 through 1983-1984 is presented, with a focus on systemwide norms, averages, and distributions for grants, loans, scholarships, and employment. In 1983-1984 financial aid was awarded to 30.5 percent of the unduplicated students at…

This report presents the results of a 1991 study of the performance and management of endowments of colleges and universities. Part I offers information on the data collection and describes several definitions and formula used in the analysis. Part II presents the report's exhibits in two sections the first of which treats endowment…

State spending on higher education has risen up to 30% in some states, with much of the new money paying for technology, upgrading community colleges, and providing funds to college shortchanged previously. Only Alaska and Hawaii showed net decreases. Data on 1997-98 dollar appropriations and percentage changes for each state institution and for…