Report: Steep higher education funding cuts a nationwide trend
As Appropriations Committee hearings on state support for higher education continue today, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has released a report that shows state funding of public universities and colleges has declined sharply in almost every state, including Nebraska.
Conversely tuition has gone up and schools have had to make changes that undermine the quality of education they offer, the study found.
“Investment in higher education should be a priority,” said Phil Oliff, policy analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and author of the report released today. “A highly-educated workforce is key to economic growth, so failing to invest in public colleges and universities undermines a state’s economic potential.”
Nebraska has decreased spending per student by an average 16.6 percent, or $1,578, between Fiscal Years 2008 and 2013.
In that same period, college tuition at Nebraska’s public colleges and universities has increased by an average of 17.3 percent, or $1,061.