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State funding for public higher education in Massachusetts fell steeply over the course of two decades, limiting college access for low- and middle-income students, according to a new report from the Massachusetts-based Hildreth Institute, a research and policy center focused on higher education and economic mobility.
The report says that state funding for public colleges and universities dropped 20 percent from 2000 to 2020, after adjusting for inflation. State spending per full-time student went from $10,907 to $8,728. During that time, four-year universities in the state increased tuition and fees 59 percent on average, and community colleges raised tuition and fees 52 percent on average. MASSGrant, the state’s main need-based grant program, covered 80 percent of a student’s tuition and fees at public four-year institutions in the 1980s, but it only covered 10 percent of tuition and fees in 2020.
“While the state has neglected its obligation to students counting on an affordable public higher education, colleges and universities leaned heavily on families for student-generated revenue and the state’s financial aid and scholarships have failed to ease this excessive burden on low- and middle-income students,” Bahar Akman Imboden, managing director of the Hildreth Institute and author of the report, said in a press release.
The report found that more students at public colleges and universities in Massachusetts take out loans than their peers at private, nonprofit institutions—63 percent of students versus 53 percent of students. Students at public universities also shoulder more debt on average, $24,112, compared to students at private universities, $23,940.
The author recommends expanding the MASSGrant Plus program, a last-dollar grant that currently covers unmet tuition and fees and book costs for community college students and public university students eligible for the Pell Grant. The report suggests the grants should also apply to other expenses and should be increased to ensure students graduate debt-free.
“We must recommit to investing in higher education guided by the universal goal that, regardless of their background, all should have the same opportunity to reap the economic and social benefits of a high-quality higher education,” Bob Hildreth, founder and president of the Hildreth Institute, said in the release. “Expanding the MASSGrant Plus is the least we can do if we are serious about investing in the future of our middle-class families and communities of color.”
