Why this is important.
The cost of higher education is a growing concern. While students struggle to pay ever-increasing tuition bills, lawmakers and key stakeholders raise pointed questions about the return on investment of a college degree and the efficiency of taxpayer funding of colleges and universities and student aid.
Trustees are vital to addressing this financial sustainability and affordability crisis and must lead efforts to redesign the business model of higher education. The creation of a more equitable business model not only promotes institutional vitality but advances national readiness and progress, and provides a robust return on public and individual investment in higher education.
Questions for boards.
Click below to reveal key questions for your board to consider:
Board Processes
Consequential Questions:
- How does our institution keep college affordable?
- When we raise tuition, how much new net revenue do we generate?
- If the first two years at a public college become free in our state, what might it mean for our institution? What would it mean for student recruitment, retention, and attainment efforts?
Sources: Tuition and Financial Aid: Nine Points for Boards to Consider In Keeping College Affordable, by AGB 2011
Top Public Policy Issues for Higher Education, 2021–2022, AGB 2021
Board Discussions
Consequential Questions:
- Is our institution committed to providing enough campus-based financial aid so that low-income and moderate-income students do not have to accrue a large amount of debt to graduate?
- To what extent are we using institutional financial aid to attract students from other parts of the world? Or are we relying on international students solely to help generate more revenue?
- What are the major cost pressures at our institution?
- What is the percentage and number of Pell recipients at our institution?
Sources: Tuition and Financial Aid: Nine Points for Boards to Consider In Keeping College Affordable, by AGB 2011
Top Public Policy Issues for Higher Education, 2021–2022, AGB 2021
Student Success
Consequential Questions:
- How do tuition and fees at our institution compare with the national average for our sector?
- How many students at our institution pay the full sticker prices without a discount?
- How many of our students borrow to help finance their education? What is the average debt level at graduation?
Sources: Tuition and Financial Aid: Nine Points for Boards to Consider In Keeping College Affordable, by AGB 2011
Top Public Policy Issues for Higher Education, 2021–2022, AGB 2021
Recommended resources.
We carefully curated these staff-picked resources for you:
Understanding Enrollment Management: A Guide for College and University Board Members
2020
Don Hossler and Jerome A. Lucido
The AGB 2020 Trustee Index
2020
AGB
Design for Affordability: How Can Your Institution Advance Affordability and Financial Sustainability Goals?
Trusteeship magazine, July/August 2021
Laura Yaeger and Mark Finlan
