A report issued by the Washington State Budget & Policy Center, a Seattle-based, progressive think tank, confirms that the higher education impacts noted here are applicable around the state.
The report said:
• The average cost to attend college in Washington state has risen 94 percent since 2007 at four-year institutions and has risen 54 percent at community and technical colleges. Current proposals would cut an additional 15 percent of state support from higher education.
• More than 20,000 eligible students were unable to receive financial aid in 2010 due to insufficient state resources. Financial aid for 70,000 students is on the line in the next round of budget decisions.
The study demonstrates the dramatic shift in higher education funding policies in this state over a relatively short period of time. Purce said when he came to Evergreen 22 years ago, the state was paying 75 percent of the costs to operate the college. Today the state’s share has dwindled to 35 percent.