LANSING (AP) -- A reduction in state aid going to Michigan's public universities has helped spark skyrocketing tuition and threatens to undermine the state's efforts to dramatically boost its number of college graduates.
While state leaders have paid lip service to increasing the state's commitment to college education, they haven't backed it up with significant resources, other than increases in merit scholarships for college-bound Michigan students.
From the 2003 to 2008 fiscal years, average state tax allocations nationally for higher education rose 24.1 percent, according to the annual Grapevine report compiled by Illinois State University faculty. In contrast, Michigan cut its higher education tax support by 5.1 percent during that period. Michigan was the only state with lower aid levels for universities and community colleges than five years ago.
Universities likely will get a 1 percent funding increase from the state in the budget year starting in October, while community colleges will get a 2 percent bump. That's below the 3 percent boost they expected to get just a few weeks ago.
Michigan's 15 state universities have responded to shrinking state funds by raising tuition 35 percent from fall 2004 through fall 2007, based on an enrollment-weighted method reported by The College Board. That's the eighth-highest increase in the nation since the 2004-05 school year and well above the national average of 21 percent.
Students are feeling the pinch.
Travis Carr, a 27-year-old Lansing Community College student, plans to someday attend Central Michigan University to earn a high school teaching degree. But he's finding it tough to get student loans in the ongoing national credit crackdown.
He's working up to 60 hours a week at two different jobs this summer and taking classes part time -- a tricky time management formula that squeezes him on both ends.
"If you're trying to make money to afford school, you have to spend so much time at work you can't focus on school," Carr said. "But if you cut back your work hours, you don't make enough to go to school."
Michigan's average public four-year college tuition last school year -- $8,508 -- ranked No. 6 nationally. Only Vermont, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Illinois had higher average tuition costs.
Michigan's public university tuition increased about 11 percent last year, compared to 6 percent at private colleges. Next year's announced public university tuition increases have been lower but still are exceeding the inflation rate.
There are signs higher tuition is pricing some students out of the market.
A total of 289,475 students were enrolled in Michigan's 15 public universities in fall 2007, up less than 1 percent from the year before and a signal that enrollment growth has slowed in recent years. Enrollment at two-year community colleges, where average tuition was $2,338 last year, has increased much faster.
Education is crucial to income. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that adults with a bachelor's degree earned an average of $54,689 in 2006, compared to $29,448 for those with no more than a high school diploma. Adults with advanced degrees earn four times more than those without a high school diploma.
"At this point, I really don't think a college education is optional," said Chris Mitchell, 22, a junior at Oakland University in suburban Detroit. "If you want to make a decent living, you've got to have at least some kind of degree."
In 2004, Gov. Jennifer Granholm announced she wanted to double Michigan's number of college graduates within a decade. The theory: A better educated work force will help draw cutting-edge jobs to Michigan.
The need for action was clear. As of 2006, about 26 percent of Michigan's population aged 25 and older had at least a bachelor's degree. That's below the national average of about 28 percent and far below the national leader, Massachusetts, where more than 40 percent of people in that age group had a college degree.
But since Granholm made that announcement, she and state lawmakers have cut taxpayer aid to universities. Michigan's sluggish economy has led to lower-than-expected tax revenues, causing years of cuts or the cancellation of spending increases universities thought were coming.
Michigan State President Lou Anna Simon said the state risks trouble by ignoring investments in higher education that could pave the way for a brighter economy and stronger communities. Other states -- also worried about paying for prisons, Medicaid and other social programs -- have managed to do more for higher education than Michigan.
"They're funding higher education. So why aren't we?" Simon said. "An investment in these kids is an investment in the future. An investment in research pays dividends in the future."
Print this story
E-mail this story
