N.C. gets an 'F' in college tuition

National report fears for education

Despite a reputation for bargain universities, North Carolina's college affordability is deteriorating, according to a new national report on higher education.

The report gives the state good marks for students' preparation, participation and college degree completion. But North Carolina's public and private colleges get an "F" for affordability along with those in 42 other states, according to figures released today by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, a nonpartisan policy research group based in California.

The consequences for those states could be devastating, higher education advocates say, arguing that the United States will lose its edge in the global economy.

In this country, the likelihood of a ninth grader's enrolling in college four years later is less than 40 percent, according to the report. Extending higher education to more Americans, particularly low-income and minority families, is no longer an issue of charity, they argue. It's a matter of national competitiveness.

The educational power of the United States is concentrated in its baby boomer population, not in young people, in contrast to other nations around the world, said Pat Callan, president of the center.

For the first time in our nation's history, Callan said, the next generation may be less educated than its parents.

"We're in a world that relentlessly punishes communities, states and countries with undereducated populations," Callan said.

Rich and poor

The findings indicate that the share of family income required for a year of college has grown for all but the richest Americans and there are big gaps in college participation between rich and poor students.

Financial aid has not paced tuition increases, and college costs are rising faster than inflation, family income and even health care, Callan said. At the same time, immigrant and minority populations, which are disproportionately low-income, are increasing.

It's a scenario that has people worried.

Next week, UNC-Chapel Hill will put the issue at the forefront when it hosts a national conference, "The Politics of Inclusion: Higher Education at a Crossroads."

The conference, from Sept. 10 to 13, is expected to attract 150 policymakers, economists, researchers, and foundation and business leaders. It will showcase UNC-CH's Carolina Covenant program, which provides debt-free education to poor students.

The initiative, which now serves 949 freshmen, sophomores and juniors, has received accolades nationally. More than 20 universities have started similar programs, including N.C. State University, which this year kicked off its Pack Promise program that will serve about 400 freshmen each year.

Josh Wilkes, 21, of Clarkton, a UNC-CH junior, isn't sure he would be in college without the Carolina Covenant. He works for a lab on campus as part of the pact and will graduate with no debt.

The budding psychologist is saving the loans for graduate school. "I've got a long educational road ahead of me," he said.

UNC-CH Chancellor James Moeser said he hoped next week's conference influences national policy and practice.

"We've got to see this as a competitiveness issue," Moeser said. "It is a matter of social justice and equity, but it's also a matter of national interest."

Moeser praised the legislature for creating a statewide need-based financial aid program in recent years, even while it cut the state budget. His biggest fear, he said, is a major change in federal loans that could jeopardize programs such as the Carolina Covenant.