Connecticut Colleges Failing in Affordability
AFFORDABILITY
The New Britain Herald
Tia Albright
Boston University Washington News Service
October 5, 2006
WASHINGTON, Oct. 5 – Connecticut may be the richest state in the nation, but over the past decade its colleges have become less affordable, particularly for low-income families, according to a report by an independent higher education advocacy group.
In an effort to eliminate decreased college affordability in Connecticut, Lt. Gov. Kevin Sullivan has called for grassroots and legislative action to make higher education a top priority.
“Higher education is now essential for the next generation and the economic future of our state,” said Sullivan.
Connecticut received an “F” in affordability, ranking 43rd among states, according to the report. The state has made no improvement in college affordability since the last report came out in two years ago.
The report was issued by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, a non-partisan, non-profit group that studies higher education.
“Unfortunately, state government is failing to do anything about it,” said Sullivan. “In fact, if higher education is the bridge to the future, state government is making it more and more expensive to get across.”
At Central Connecticut State University, students and their families are feeling the strain of decreased financial aid and increased tuition costs, and they’re not the only ones.
“We have a lot of working families and middle-class families that are working as hard as they can to educate their children, and they tend to be hindered the most by the cost of tuition and the decrease in financial aid,” said Gladys Colon-Lawson, assistant director of financial aid for Central Connecticut.
College affordability is a widespread problem in the United States. Connecticut, along with 42 other states, received failing grades in affordability, according to the report. The highest grades were given to California and Utah, each of which received a “C-”.
The report grades each state on five different criteria. Connecticut received “A’s” in preparation, participation and benefits, and a “B” in completion.
Colon-Lawson said that the families with multiple children and other expenses that are not included on the state financial aid forms suffer extensively because the aid offices do not consider how far that family’s dollar has to stretch.
The report found that community college costs the average Connecticut family 22 percent of its household income and a four-year public university costs families 29 percent of their income before financial aid. Private school tuition far outweighed the financial burdens of public colleges and universities, costing the average family 71 percent of their household income.
In 1997, Central Connecticut State University’s cost for tuition and room and board was $8,984 for in-state students and $14,462 for out-of-state students, according to a university tuition pamphlet.
Almost ten years later the cost has increased to $13,474 for in-state students and $21,414 for out-of-state students, said Colon-Lawson.
The report said that while the cost of tuition has risen by $1,842 for four-year public institutions from 2000 to 2005, the median income of Connecticut residents didn’t change, but tuition increased 41 percent.
“To make higher education more affordable, let’s be sure annual state appropriations at least keep up with inflation in the cost of higher education,” said Sullivan.
According to a higher education report by the Campaign for America’s Future, a non-profit progressive organization focused on policy, state appropriations for education in Connecticut fell by 21 percent per student between 2000 and 2005.
Student debt, on average, has increased nearly 60 percent since the 1990s, according to the report.
Sullivan said that Connecticut student financial aid programs need to be funded at the levels leaders have promised but rarely met.
“Unless we get the public and candidates for federal and state office to focus this year, it’s just going to be more of the same for Connecticut: higher education costs, more burden on families and students, big debts for higher education borrowing, and a ‘brain drain’ that sends more than 5,000 of our best and brightest out of state,” Sullivan said.
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