The rising cost of higher education has led to increased tuition costs for students and their families, forcing more students to secure larger amounts of debt to finance their educational pursuits. Although scholars have explored how student loan debt accumulation influences higher education persistence and graduation, an unexplored area of higher…

Data in this report reflect responses from 64 four-year public institutions that collectively enroll approximately 718,149 undergraduate students (according to data reported to the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS)). Respondents participated in the Ruffalo Noel Levitz (RNL) national electronic poll of "Effective Practices…

Data in this report reflect responses from 86 four-year private institutions that collectively enroll approximately 261,189 undergraduate students (according to data reported to the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS)). Respondents participated in the Ruffalo Noel Levitz (RNL) national electronic poll of "Effective…

Community colleges across the nation face many challenges in terms of institutional funding. As legislators in the Southeast continue to define metrics for funding mechanisms that define the amount of funding an institution receives legislators have used performance-based funding to channel funds into higher education institutions since 1979.…

Higher education has been touted as critical to social mobility, even greater longevity; however, these benefits accrue with degree completion, and many students who begin college never earn a degree. Using the most recent Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), we sought to understand variation in college completion rates and test…

Performance funding has been a popular form of funding colleges and universities for several decades. Often the purpose is to make universities more efficient (Miao, 2012). Missouri has had two separate models of performance funding in play, a decade apart. In this research both performance funding models are examined, including a 10- year period…

Performance funding policies are politically popular, however research on performance funding has shown that these policies are ineffective and can have unintended negative consequences, particularly for lower-resourced institutions and underserved students. The purpose of this study was to determine if the Montana University System performance…

State support for higher education has been volatile, prompting public universities to pursue alternative revenue sources to supplement state support. While dependence on alternative revenue sources has been raising, the relationship between these revenue sources and graduation rates has not been examined in depth. This study used panel data from…

A primary rationale for public provision of K-12 education and state financing of school spending is that education fosters civic engagement and the development of social capital. However, limited evidence exists on whether and how school spending affects civic engagement. Virtually all studies focus on the impact of educational attainment (as…

This study examined the connection of faculty status and impacts on student success metrics and performance-based funding outcomes. While the topics of adjunct faculty and performance-based funding are well documented in the available literature, there does not seem to be a study that connects the two issues to determine if faculty status impacts…

We compiled the first longitudinal data set with detailed state funding information to examine whether different funding strategies for public higher education correlate with college access and completion, with a focus on outcomes among racially minoritized students. We found no relationships between funding mechanisms and student outcomes at…

Performance-based funding policies for postsecondary institutions have been enacted throughout the United States as an answer to reductions in public funding and increased accountability mandates. Institutional effectiveness, as demonstrated through metrics such as graduation and retention rates, dictates the level of funding received. Educational…

The reconciliation bill House Republicans passed outlines several proposed changes to higher education financing, including a new risk-sharing formula that would have colleges pay back a portion of their students' unpaid student loan bills. The amount colleges must pay is based on borrowers' unpaid loan payments each year (missed payments or…

The "South Carolina Higher Education Statistical Abstract" is a comprehensive, single-source compilation of tables and graphs which report data frequently requested by the governor, legislators, college and university staff, other state government officials, and the general public. The 2022 edition of the "Statistical Abstract"…

Data in this report reflect responses from 296 four-year and two-year colleges and universities that collectively enroll approximately 1,700,000 undergraduate students (according to data reported to IPEDS). Respondents participated in the Ruffalo Noel Levitz (RNL) national electronic poll of Effective Practices for Student Success, Retention, and…