49 States Get F In College Affordability

As Economy Worsens, Only California (Barely) Passes Independent Survey

(CBS/AP)  An independent report on American higher education flunks all but one state when it comes to affordability - an embarrassing verdict that is unlikely to improve as the economy contracts.

The biennial study by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, which evaluates how well higher education is serving the public, handed out Fs for affordability to 49 states, up from 43 two years ago. Only California received a passing grade in the category, a C, thanks to its relatively inexpensive community colleges.

The report card uses a range of measurements to give states grades, from A to F, on the performance of their public and private colleges. The affordability grade is based on how much of the average family's income it costs to go to college.

Almost everywhere, that figure is up, according to the survey. Only two states - New York and Tennessee - have made even minimal improvements since 2000, but they're still considered to be failing. Everywhere else, families must fork over a greater percentage of their income to pay for college. In Illinois, the average cost attending a public four-year college has jumped from 19 percent of family's income in 1999-2000 to 35 percent in 2007-2008, and in Pennsylvania, from 29 percent to 41 percent.

For public four year colleges average tuition has skyrocketed from $1,600 a year 20 years ago to nearly $7,000 a year now. Private school tuition has shot up from $8,000 to $25,000 a year, as CBS News' Kelly Wallace reports.

Low-income families have been hardest hit, Wallace reports. Families making less than $19,000 a year are now paying a whopping 57 percent of their incomes for college, compared to 39 percent in 1999. The share for middle class families making less than $90,000 also climbed from 18 to 25 percent. For families making more than $90,000 a year, the cost rose the least - from 7 to 9 percent of annual income.

And that's after accounting for financial aid, which is increasingly being used to lure high-achieving students who boost a school's reputation, but who don't need help to go to college.

"For a long time, we just thought about the poor," National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education Chairman Jim Hunt told Wallace. "But now many middle class students just can't go. The tuition is too high."

The problem seems likely to worsen as the economy does, said Patrick Callan, the center's president.

Historically during downturns, "states make disproportionate cuts in higher education and, in return for the colleges taking them gracefully, allow them to raise tuition," Callan said. "If we handle this recession like we've handled others, we will see that this gets worse."

Scott Cristal of Columbia, Mo., said he wasn't surprised by the study's findings. Cristal, who has sent two daughters to college and has another two yet to pay for, said that he is trying to expand his business to help pay the tuition bills, but that it's been hard because of the slowing economy.

"We're going to play it by ear, be optimistic, hope for the best and just ride it out as best we can," Cristal said. "I think that's what everybody in America's doing right now."

States fared modestly better in other categories such as participation, where no state failed and about half the states earned As or Bs - comparable to the report two years ago. One reason for the uptick is that more students are taking rigorous college-prep courses, the study found. In Texas, for instance, the percentage of high schoolers taking at least one upper-level science course has nearly tripled from 20 percent to 56 percent.

But better preparation for college hasn't translated into better enrollment or completion, with only two states - Arizona and Iowa - receiving an A for participation in higher education.

And the discrepancy in enrollment between states is still great: Forty-four percent of young Iowans are in college, while just 18 percent of their counterparts in Alaska - one of three states to get an F in the category - are enrolled.

Callan said the United States is at best standing still while other countries pass it in areas like college enrollment and completion. And as higher education fails to keep up with population growth, the specter lurks of new generations less educated than their Baby Boomer predecessors.

"The educational strength of the American population is in the group that's about to retire," Callan said. "In the rest of the world it's the group that's gone to college since 1990."

In related news:

Harvard University says its endowment has tumbled $8 billion in the four months since the end of the last fiscal year.

The estimated 22 percent decline is the school's sharpest endowment drop in modern history. The endowment was valued at $36.9 billion on June 30.

According to a letter to deans from university heads, Harvard must take a "hard look" at staffing levels and compensation. They're also forecasting a 30 percent drop for the fiscal year ending in June 2009.

The school has said its U.S. stock portfolio and foreign equity portfolio had taken hard hits recently. The school's endowment is the largest in higher education.

The university's president warns that the estimated drop may be conservative because some money managers that have yet to report figures.

[matrixrx2003]

RowdyDFW needs to go to college so she can be smarter then a moron or the average **** !

[wl7bzh]

Many major universities and colleges have adopted the mantra that students must be "independent learners"-Translation? The instructors and professors in their arrogance and laziness make it clear that they have no intention of teaching or preparing a lesson.

Two modes of pulling this off are 1. Assign term papers and projects as the total learning experience. 2. Assign massive reading lists with the simple instruction that the student are responsible for knowing everything.

Instructors get paid without any work while students either sink or swim.

And you were wondering why some students across the nation were going postal?

[vsg4]

This way all college going people will be paying their debts forever. This will make class difference even wider as rich becomes richer and middle/poor people try to send their kids to colleges by barrowing and pay that for the rest of their lives.

Mission accomplished by this Prez. . The total money spent on Iraq war around 800 billions could have helped the bail out as well as college education. But that do not give no bid defense contracts in siders and 30 years cheap crude oil supply agreement to big oil.

[antoniof123]

Instructors get paid without any work while students either sink or swim.

And you were wondering why some students across the nation were going postal?

Posted by wl7bzh at 10:16 AM : Dec 03, 2008

What retarded schools are you talking about at FAU the Professors work day and night and even grade their own papers no more grade help. This is typical across the state of Florida. The money is just not there.

The statement is typical of how right wing shock jocks say something enough times to get people to believe their lie.

Sorry no sell.

[credibility2]

How about mental and intellectual suitability for college admittance, never mind the money thing. We''ve dumbed down our academic requirements so much in the past few decades in order to allow for those who lack the intellectual and academic aptitude for this privilege. Remember, even public colleges and universities are a privilege and not a right and have to be earned. Money isn''t the issue, it''s the scholarly aspect that is.

[wl7bzh]

The statement is typical of how right wing shock jocks say something enough times to get people to believe their lie.

Sorry no sell.

Posted by antoniof123 at 10:21 AM : Dec 03, 2008

Before you hand out your academic crapp I suggest you get your university website completed.

Shock Jocks? Did we ascend the hallowed halls of FAU and question the deity of academia? Academia tends to be arrogant bullies-Truth? You know it and I know it-those that can, teach-Those that can''t assign busywork. If you don''t want to teach, I suggest you get off your celllulite laden fat arse and get a job out of education.

[tromboneman3]

Many major universities and colleges have adopted the mantra that students must be "independent learners"-Translation? The instructors and professors in their arrogance and laziness make it clear that they have no intention of teaching or preparing a lesson.

Two modes of pulling this off are 1. Assign term papers and projects as the total learning experience. 2. Assign massive reading lists with the simple instruction that the student are responsible for knowing everything.

Instructors get paid without any work while students either sink or swim.

And you were wondering why some students across the nation were going postal?

Posted by wl7bzh

Where are you getting your facts? Have you ever actually looked at the work load a professor has?
All the professors I had taught everyday, and required you to be there or you could fail. I can look back in my notebooks from the last two years and see exactly what was being taught on which day. And then some of them even had Saturday study sessions just to help you out. So I am sorry if your professors were bad, but don''t think all or even most are that way. Oh and before you say it...yes we did still have term papers as well, and massive reading assignments, but the pro taught a lot more than just that.

[getoffmine1]

here we go, after healthcare becomes a right people will start screaming that the taxpayers should foot their kids college tuition as well. Lets just make everything free and live like smelly hippies.

[legacyabq]

Not everyone is meant for college.
I know some pretty stupid people that went to college and didnt learn anything concrete, or how to think critically or care about knowledge..
The more underserving brats that get handed a degree just for SHOWING UP, the LESS VALUE college degrees have for everyone..
A degree dont mean jack anymore as it is..
Thanks slackers and socialists for ruining education

[legacyabq]

How about mental and intellectual suitability for college admittance, never mind the money thing. We''''ve dumbed down our academic requirements so much in the past few decades in order to allow for those who lack the intellectual and academic aptitude for this privilege. Remember, even public colleges and universities are a privilege and not a right and have to be earned. Money isn''''t the issue, it''''s the scholarly aspect that is.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by Credibility2


Absolutley true

[roadracer9x]

LegacyABQ-- I wouldn''t blame the kids. If teachers were paid higher salaries and made more accountable for their ability to teach, we wouldn''t be a third world country as far as education goes. It is obscene that athletes, celebrities, and rock stars make millions while our teachers make less than most truck drivers. But we, the public, are ultimately at fault since we attend sporting events, rock concerts, and go to the movies thus jacking up what these people make and yet we do not get involved (as a whole) in the local school systems.

[indianaman13]

This is a systematic approach to keep a consumer society like ours running. The populace has to be at a certain low education level to keep them buying *** they don''t need. Dumb people are easily fooled into being dumb with their money, go figure. The countries view on education creates a elite among the populace as well, all based on money and family, and i thought that us called Aristocracy, or a monarchy, or at the very least, a Hierarchy based on money. The general population are nothing more than numbers and statistics to those leading right now.

[indianaman13]

Legacy,

You seem to think that intelligence is genetic and not a skill that is learned over time. College is just the culmination of a persons education. You want to make a difference in children, teach them more when they are younger, like getting them ready for math in 1st grade, not 3rd. And i don''t know where you went to school, but no one ever gets a degree for just showing up, there is this thing called work that students have to do and show for something called credit. I feel i have to explain this to you since you seem to never have gone to school.

[walt1944-2009]

An independant study has determined that California is the only state in the Union that makes college affordable and that is "barely".

Naturally, this is all in keeping with the philosphy of the Great Emperor Bush II and all neocon Fascist Socialist Nazi Republicans everywhere who feel that college is a "privilege" which goes only to the spoiled kids of the rich and powerful, and not to the kids of the "underprivileged" masses.

After all, the Great Emperor Bush II himself was a totally spoiled rich kid who graduated from an Ivy League school with plenty of financial help from his "daddy"!

As far as actually LEARNING anything, one gets an idea of the Great Emperor''s IQ everytime he opens his mouth!

Keeping higher education out of the reach of the ordinary ciizen also means that the average person is believed to be more stupid, and thus more easily "influenced" by the maniac babblings of such "people" as Rush "Druggie" Limbaugh, Bill "I''m Always Right!" O''Reilly, and that "brilliant" orater from the sewers of New York, Micheal Savage!

The more stupid the average person is, the more "intelligent" the Great Emperor Bush II seems to be!

SIG HEIL, I LIKE STUPID PEOPLE!!!, BUSH!!!

[comeon11]

The price has gone up secure and increase the gap between rich and poor.

[comeon11]

vsg4....................The purpose is not to make student loans seem impossible to pay back- it''s to deter people from going to school because of the high student loans.

[jm_rvel]

This study is missing something. I go to Florida State University and my tuition is about $700 a semester for fifteen credits. That is not including the grants I recieve for academic achievement. Florida has the lowest tuition for state universities in the nation, I do not know how this study missed that.

[nolalou]

This study is missing something. I go to Florida State University and my tuition is about $700 a semester for fifteen credits. That is not including the grants I recieve for academic achievement. Florida has the lowest tuition for state universities in the nation, I do not know how this study missed that.

Posted by JM_rvel

I don''t think they missed it. They don''t look at indiviudal colleges, but they average all colleges in the state. So apparently the low tuition at Florida State is offset by high tuition a Florida''s private colleges.

[darnedsocks]

LET''S SEE WHAT THE AVERAGE AMERICAN IS FACED WITH WHEN IT COMES TO DEBT:

SCHOOL LOANS: $30,000 TO $70,0000
NEW VEHICLE: $15,000 TO 30,000 EVERY 5 YEARS
NEW HOME: $300,000
MEDICAL INSURANCE: $8,0000/PER YEAR
NEW BABY: $1,000,000
TAXES: $PUT YOUR NUMBER HERE

U.S. WORKER''S MEDIAN ANNUAL INCOME $50,0000

HMMM. GEE, YA THINK WE GOTTA A PROBLEM?

[xxunknown]

Where do you live that the average cost of a home is $300,000?

[xxunknown]

Why do you need a brand new vehicle every 5 years?
There are scholarships available for college.
Dont have a child if you can not afford one.
Could it be the US is materialistic and we CHOOSE to overspend?

[kuei12]

GEE. WHY CAN''T AMERICANS KEEP UP WITH OTHER COUNTRIES TECHNOLOGY AND EDUCATION? LOL

[xxunknown]

If you choose to be a consumer, you are going to pay the price. Not all of us need the latest fashion in clothes, the best in luxury vehicles and a mansion. I make about $50,000 a year and I do just fine.

[kuei12]

"Why do you need a brand new vehicle every 5 years?"

I don''t if I don''t have a job to drive to.

"There are scholarships available for college."

That''s great if you are the 1 in a thousand kids who can qualify.

"Dont have a child if you can not afford one."

In america it doesn''t matter since we have to support everyone else''s child.

"Could it be the US is materialistic and we CHOOSE to overspend? "

Could it be that our politicians are spending too much of our money and we have to struggle to keep up? Naw. Couldn''t be that.

[xxunknown]

kuei12: There is public transportation and USED cars available. I went to school on part scholarship. You should check your figures, more than 1/1000 qualify. And you dont need to tell me that the govt is raping me. I believe taxation is illegal as outlined in the constitution. I am pointing out that people live above their means.

[xxunknown]

kuei12: There is public transportation and USED cars available. I went to school on part scholarship. You should check your figures, more than 1/1000 qualify. And you dont need to tell me that the govt is raping me. I believe taxation is illegal as outlined in the constitution. I am pointing out that people live above their means.

[kamsack50]

The country can talk all it wants about equal opportunity and all it wants about mean big business.
But all the while the academic society is ripping us off with absurd college education costs that only the rich can afford or that mid-incomes have to go broke for - and that minorities can never dream of.
All courtesy of the white, liberal educator elites.

[rhs648]

The country can talk all it wants about equal opportunity and all it wants about mean big business.
But all the while the academic society is ripping us off with absurd college education costs that only the rich can afford or that mid-incomes have to go broke for - and that minorities can never dream of.
All courtesy of the white, liberal educator elites. --

Posted by kamsack50

Then you must feel ripped off everytime you buy a car, take a vacation, buy a house, or buy a soda. College was never been meant to be an entitlement. There is no legal requirement for people to attend college. In spite of this, state and federal government has been providing lower cost state colleges and community colleges in addition to financial aid such as loans and grants. Add to that affirmative action where minority students get preferential treatment in admissions and lowered tuition and room and board. If you can''t afford the more costly schools, you have the option of state subsidized and community colleges. How much more equality do you want? Should the government help buy you a mercedes when you can only afford a Kia?

[ptruth2]

kamsack50 - you must not be aware of all the programs that serve minority groups. There''s so many. The only problem with them is that they are racist. They are only offered to blacks and hispanics. There are many poor whites. If you want to complain about something, complain about the lack of fairness in college aid to poor people of any color or ethnic group, and not about lack of aid to minorities, who get it all. That''s what he liberal education industry has created - racist aid policies that should never be tolerated by any eductaed person who really believes that all people deserve an even break.

[patrik1974]

This is why I plan to home school my children through grad school.

[evian_ycnan]

This is why I plan to home school my children through grad school.

Posted by patrik1974 at 06:24 PM : Dec 03, 2008

Home schooling -- still the best way to be sure your kids never know more than you.

[denn034]

This report was issued by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education. Here''s the contact information as per their web site: THE NATIONAL CENTER''s office in San Jose, CA, San Jose Office, 152 North Third Street, Suite 705,San Jose, California 95112, Telephone: [phone], FAX: [phone], EMail: [e-mail]. That''s right, this biased national center is headquartered in the one state that didn''t get an F. Now, that''s biased and raises serious questions about the approach taken in grading. Never accept things at face value people!!!!!

[incog-nito]

Oh well. Knowledge is probably overrated anyway.

[spadeisspade]

I think it''s appropriate to cut college funding over public school funding. If public schools are failing, a child will never succeed in college, even if they can afford it. Colleges should cut out unnecessary programs and majors they use to boost their own coffers-like liberal arts! What exactly do you do with that when you graduate? College is one of the biggest scams a young adult falls for, and unfortunately now because of this, it''s absolutely critical to have a degree to stand out (even if it''s in said liberal arts or some other unrelated to the job degree).

[cbscrash072]

Knowledge is power. Degrees are over rated. I have met some really stupid people with degrees. Apparently the only requirement for a degree is the ability to pay or have someone else pay for you.

[rhs648]

I think it''s appropriate to cut college funding over public school funding. If public schools are failing, a child will never succeed in college, even if they can afford it. Colleges should cut out unnecessary programs and majors they use to boost their own coffers-like liberal arts! What exactly do you do with that when you graduate? College is one of the biggest scams a young adult falls for, and unfortunately now because of this, it''''s absolutely critical to have a degree to stand out (even if it''''s in said liberal arts or some other unrelated to the job degree).

Posted by spadeisspade

Many studies over the years have shown that college graduates generally earn more than high school graduates. High School graduates generally earn more than high school drop outs. As long as employers want to hire college graduates, it will pay for students to go to college. This does not mean that everyone who graduates college is smart, has common sense, or even applies what they were taught.

[rmwhitman]

Actually, Louisiana has a scholarship program open to all students who achieve a certain point average and ACT score. The cost to go to college is very reasonable for those who commit to study. Most students who work in school and study for the ACT receive the scholarship. All three of my children did and nearly of of my friends children. The program is called TOPS and was started by an oil Executive Mr. Taylor as a limited program, it worked so well, Mr. Taylor encouraged the state to adopt the program.

[incog-nito]

Maybe they''ll start offering courses that Americans will need in the coming years, courses like "Foraging and Scavenging", "Guerrilla Warfare Tactics", and "Post-Apocalypse Survival".

[puzzler125]

One great change I hope President Obama endorses quickly is that of having a gap year between high school and college. Designed to be a service year each student would have the opportunity to choose from a wide variety of options both near and far from home. College credit would apply and some students may choose not to continue on to college but stay with their volunteer job in a paid position.

[downsteamjim]

And the answer is, "Raise tuition!"

[incog-nito]

I thought there was 57 States?

Posted by republic76 at 09:34 PM : Dec 03, 2008

Har har. Now get over the election and move along.

[sepa2]

Any body see those surchages due to high oil prices coming down. Every one is going for big money. Health bussiness (no longer a care), terrorism economy (with a flavor of patriotism), financial sector (already in trouble due to greed. Why anyone expecct colleges to be any different? Curious to know whetre all the money goes.

[rhs648]

One great change I hope President Obama endorses quickly is that of having a gap year between high school and college. Designed to be a service year each student would have the opportunity to choose from a wide variety of options both near and far from home. College credit would apply and some students may choose not to continue on to college but stay with their volunteer job in a paid position.

Posted by Puzzler125

Why waste a year? I might not have gone to college if there was a break between high school and college or if it would take five years instead of four and I have two degrees in addition to college. One of my sons is a doctor. Four years of college, four years of medical school, one year of internship, and four years of residency. That is thirteen years of education beyond high school. He certainly would not want a year tacked onto that.

[brian9194x]

Online Poker

It really amazes me at the lengths people will go to in this country. I know there is corruption but on this level, a card game, is amusing. The NFL should be ashamed of themselves and people like you should be ashamed of yourself. Everything you and others claim is contradicted by the exemption of online fantasy fball, horse betting, and lottery. This isn''''''''t even about online poker, its about constitutional rights and corruption. Also everything you claim even though its false would be fixed by regulation. The point is that you just want online poker gone. That''''''''s fishy to anyone with a brain.

Point proven.

Oh and playing online poker in the good old USA, is LEGAL. You can read the law for yourself.

[drew30319-2009]

College is free in GA - funded by the lottery. Great idea & it''s paid off well.

[caliengineer]

Obama''s idea of a gap year is idiotic. The percentage of people who take a year off and then actually attend college as they planned is very small.

[yongamerica]

Turning college sports into the industry it is today takes massive monetary resources. Most college varsity students aren''t just given a full ticket, they are given a first class golden ticket.

Meanwhile US universities cater more and more to foreign students turning State Supported Universities into degree industries for foreign countries.

And then the Bill Gates of the corporate world goes before congress and begs for more H1B technical visas because supposedly, there aren''t enough qualified US citizens to take the jobs.

Why is it easier to get a sports scholarship than a technical scholarship?

[wl7bzh]

Actually, Louisiana has a scholarship program open to all students who achieve a certain point average and ACT score. The cost to go to college is very reasonable for those who commit to study. Most students who work in school and study for the ACT receive the scholarship. All three of my children did and nearly of of my friends children. The program is called TOPS and was started by an oil Executive Mr. Taylor as a limited program, it worked so well, Mr. Taylor encouraged the state to adopt the program.

Posted by rmwhitman at 08:46 PM : Dec 03, 2008


Yea, I lived in Louisiana. What percentage of students graduating can meet the requirement?

Better yet what is the adult illiteracy rate?