Page 213 - Crisis in Higher Education

184 • Crisis in Higher Education

TABLE 9.3
Summary of Government Funding for 2013–2014 Academic Year (billions of dollars)
Federal Funding Amount Comments
Pell grants $31.3 Allocated to students based on
financial need
Other financial aid grants $1.6 Other need-based grants
Research grants $24.6 Research support such as the National
Science Foundation
Veteran education benefits $12.2 Benefit to men and women of the
armed services
Other grant programs $2.2 Funds to help disadvantaged students
prepare for success—provided to
minority serving institutions
General-purpose appropriations $3.8 Expenses to selected institutions such
as military schools, historically black
colleges, and land grant universities
Total federal support a $75.6
State Funding Amount Comments
Financial aid grants $9.6 Primarily need-based and merit-based
grants
Research, agriculture, and $10.1 Support for research facilities,
medical appropriations agricultural experiment stations,
cooperative extension services, public
healthcare, and medical schools
General-purpose appropriations $53.0 Tuition subsidy that are based on
enrollment and go directly to public
colleges and universities
Total state support $72.7
Local Funding Amount Comments
General-purpose appropriation $9.2 Typically given to subsidies tuition
Source: The Pew Charitable Trusts, Federal and State Funding of Higher Education: A Changing
Landscape, 2015. http://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/issue-briefs/2015/06/
federal-and-state-funding-of-higher-education
a Difference in total compared to individual amounts caused by rounding error.

governments should decide the level of support that is best for their con-
stituents without the federal government mandating zero tuition or some
other amount. It is clear that public colleges and universities as well as
students would like to see state and local funding increase, but that, for
reasons already discussed, is unlikely to fix the underlying cost problems.
Further reductions in state and local appropriations may not be the right
response because public colleges and universities educate a large portion