The Crisis and Politics of Higher Education III

There is in modern times the acute problem of the expense of college. Since the passing of the Higher Education Act, college expenses have exploded, especially in recent years. Every constituency except the richest fears the cost of college in the same way that people fear catastrophic setbacks to their health. Government help for the cost of higher education is very welcome to those who have children approaching college age. These people are often unaware of the impact that federal regulation and subsidy have upon its cost. Anyway, they want help right now. Thus federal education policy has been enlarging and extending making the situation worse. First and foremost, they have spent a lot of money. There are major increases in most higher education programs, especially those regarding need-based aid. Both the amounts available, and the upward limits of the income groups to whom they are available, have risen sharply. This cascade of funds exceeds all prior experience in rates of growth, except for the first heady day of the Act. This additional spending is not quite getting the job done. For one thing they cannot seem to spend money as fast as colleges can raise tuition. The people they mean to help are not better off, but the colleges are.