Indicators of higher education equity in the United States

As illustrated by the indicators in this report, higher education outcomes are highly inequitable across family income groups. Moreover, on many of these indicators, gaps in outcomes are larger now than in the past. The disinvestment of state funds for public colleges and universities occurring since the 1980s and the declining value of federal student grant aid have all aided in the creation of a higher education system that is stained with inequality. Once known for wide accessibility to and excellence within its higher education system, the US now has an educational system that serves to sort students in ways related to later life chances based on their demographic characteristics rather than provide all youth with the opportunity to use their creative potential to realize the many benefits of higher education and advance the well-being and progress of the nation. The report identifies not only the current status of equity but also, when relevant data are available, trends in the direction of equity, observed from the point of view of low-income students. The final section of the report contains two essays by the report's co-authors that discuss the policy implications of the equity trends and offers strategic recommendations for fostering greater equity in higher educational attainment in the United States.

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