By Carl C. Dalstrom, USA Funds^® President and CEO

Investment in higher education provides significant dividends for graduates who reap the many social and financial rewards that a degree offers. But a new report shows that financial support for postsecondary education also pays off in ways that reach far beyond individual achievement to affect all of society.

Entire communities and the nation as a whole benefit from greater higher-education access — thanks to higher tax revenues, less unemployment, greater productivity, reduced reliance on public assistance, increased consumption, greater civic participation, less crime, and better quality of health, civic life and social cohesion.

The new report, "Investing in America’s Future: Why Student Aid Pays Off for Society and Individuals," shows, for example, that the unemployment rate for those with bachelor’s degrees was 2.9 percent in January 2004, compared with 4.9 percent for those with high-school diplomas and 8.8 percent for those with less than a high-school diploma. In the 2000 national elections, 77 percent of Americans with bachelor’s degrees voted, compared with 54 percent of high-school graduates and 38 percent of those with less than a high-school diploma.

Despite higher education’s compelling public benefits, access to college is at risk for many families. Thirty years of relative declines in grant aid based on students’ financial need and decreasing state funding for colleges and universities have dramatically shifted the burden of rising college costs to students and their families. Low-income families, in particular, are bearing the brunt of this shift.

Need-based-grant aid now represents 22 percent of federal student aid, down dramatically from 61 percent three decades ago. The purchasing power of the Pell grant, the largest federal grant for higher education, has declined significantly. As a result, the gap in college-going rates between low-income and high-income students has remained virtually unchanged during the past 20 years. Without an increase in financial support, this gap likely will widen.

Stemming the higher-education-access crisis will the require efforts of both the public and private sectors. By taking the following three steps, you can play a role in making higher education a reality for all qualified students:

• Urge your representatives to Congress to support increases in funding for Federal Pell-grants. Bolstering funding for these grants would reduce the burden on low-income students.
  
• Ask your state officials to refocus state student-aid dollars on need-based grants. This action would reverse a trend of awarding aid based on academic merit alone, a practice that has reduced funding for low-income and minority students.
  
• Suggest that your organization become an active partner in the college-financing equation, particularly through scholarship aid. Scholarships help students meet college costs that remain after federal, state and institutional financial aid is applied. Your organization also can promote higher-education access by providing tuition-reimbursement support for employees.

The broad impact that postsecondary education has on graduates and the communities in which they live should make investment in higher education a priority. The financial and social future of our nation demands a renewed commitment to making college affordable for all.