Maryland Investing Less in Higher Education and Students Pay the Price

As many new graduates across Maryland are celebrating their newly minted college degrees this month, reduced state investment in higher education and rising tuition costs threaten to put this milestone out of reach of too many Marylanders.

Years of reduced state support have helped drive up tuition at Maryland’s public colleges, jeopardizing the ability of many to afford the education that is key to their long-term financial success and essential to a growing economy. Even though

Photo by Sakeeb Sabakka via Creative Commons

Maryland has restored some funding to colleges and universities, per-student state support for higher education remains 8 percent below what it was in the 2007-08 school year, according to a new report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Community colleges have taken an even greater hit than the state’s four-year institutions. Maryland is supposed to cover one-third of the cost per student at two-year public colleges but, since 2008, budgets have been adopted that don’t meet that requirement. Over the past eight years legislators have appropriated $105 million less than required.

Community colleges serve the largest share of Maryland students, about 500,000 people per year. They are an essential component of developing the skills that people need to get good jobs and are traditionally a much more affordable option for students than four-year schools.

Students are largely the ones picking up the tab for the eroding state investment in higher education.  On average, tuition in Maryland has gone up nearly 10 percent since the 2007-08 school year—significantly outpacing the growth in median income for families. The average community college tuition for a full-time student increased by 29 percent during the same period.

For most students, federal and state aid have not kept up with the rising costs of earning a college degree, which has led to students or their families borrowing more to pay for college. Nationwide, households with student loan debt owed an average of $26,682 in 2010.

Given the growing importance of having a college degree for professional success and entry into the middle class or beyond, it is essential that Maryland take steps to reverse this trend. A large and growing share of future jobs will require college-educated workers. Areas with highly educated residents also attract employers who pay higher wages, which boosts the area’s economy so the wages of workers of all levels of education are higher.

On a positive note, state policymakers are trying to take some steps to help make college more affordable. The College Affordability Act, which awaits the governor’s action, encourages families to save for college by offering up to $5,000 in matching funds to anyone who puts money into a college savings account each year, and it provides tax credits to Marylanders paying down their student debt. Governor Hogan signing this bill into law could make the difference between college or no college for many Marylanders.

Maryland is a good place to do business today in part due to the state’s past investments in developing and maintaining a highly educated workforce. Our future economic success is at risk if we abandon these investments.