Why is tuition rising significantly at so many public universities?
As state governments have had to cut back their expenditures, they have not been able to maintain recent levels of support for higher education. In some cases, higher education has faced cuts in money already budgeted. Both have happened at Indiana University. IU has now absorbed more than $100 million in cuts and state appropriations that were withheld as the state’s worsening economy prompted a series of budget reductions beginning last summer. While Indiana state leaders did their best to fund education adequately at all levels in the face of a difficult economic situation, increases for existing programs at IU fall far short of the inflation rate. Meanwhile, the costs of health care benefits and energy — significant expenses for universities — are rising much faster than inflation. In fact, in the area of health care benefits alone, IU’s costs are expected to rise 20 percent next year. Another factor impacting the budgets of public universities is the increased competition for th
