Washington, D.C. — Black and Latinx students are more likely to attend public institutions of higher education that spend less to educate them, according to a new analysis released today from the Center for American Progress.
If these spending gaps were erased, $5 billion more would be spent annually to educate black and Latinx students. On average, the amount spent to educate a white student at a public college is $1,000 more than what is spent on students of color.
While the issue brief found large spending gaps nationally, the data show that Maryland stands out as one of the few states with both a diverse public college population and little to no spending gaps. In fact, Maryland spends 3 percent more on students of color than on their white peers. Although no one specific policy can be attributed to the state’s positive results, Maryland enrolls more students of color in its public four-year institutions, and completion rates for these students are higher than the national average.
“That racial inequities exist in American education is no major discovery, but this is further proof that such challenges persist from kindergarten all the way through college,” said Sara Garcia, policy analyst for Postsecondary Education at CAP and author of the brief. “While no single policy can explain the lack of educational spending gaps, Maryland does serve as an example of a state with more equitable spending by race.”
The brief found that racial spending gaps are a function of two key factors: First, most states fund their public colleges in a way that directs more money to elite research institutions over less selective four-year and community colleges. Second, students of color are disproportionately likely to attend those very same colleges that receive fewer resources to prepare students for success, leading to less being spent on them.
To correct the gaps in access and funding, the brief recommends that states reconsider their funding formulas to provide more money for schools that enroll students who are traditionally underrepresented—such as students of color and those who are low-income. It also suggests that the federal government invest more in colleges that typically have fewer resources to spend on education, including public two-year institutions, as well as historically black colleges and universities, minority-serving institutions, and other nonflagship public colleges.
Similarly, the brief calls on states, institutions, and policymakers to work together to ensure that the current system of admissions doesn’t sort students into institutions based on factors beyond their control, such as participation in certain courses or after-school activities that may not be offered at underresourced K-12 schools.
To read the issue brief, click here.
For more information or to speak with an expert, please contact Kyle Epstein at [email protected] or 202-481-8137.