State Higher Ed Funding Up, but ‘Volatility’ Looms

Inside Higher Ed

Liam Knox

February 4, 2025

State funding for higher education increased by 4.3 percent this fiscal year, according to a new report from the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association, amounting to a total of $129.7 billion in state higher ed funding nationwide.

It’s a “modest increase,” said SHEEO senior policy analyst Kelsey Kunkle, a little less than what researchers expected—about one percentage point below the average year-over-year change in state funding going back to 1980. The organization’s annual winter report is a preliminary one, based on projections that have yet to be adjusted for inflation, so the ultimate increase could be a bit lower.

The bump reflects widespread state budget surpluses in 2024 and the continued use of what is likely the last of federal pandemic stimulus money; on average, states allocated 2.2 percent more of their federal funding to higher education this year. In all, two-year public colleges received $26.7 billion in state funding and four-year institutions received $62.5 billion, while $16.7 billion was allocated for state financial aid.

Continue Reading