Universities have historically been advertised as vibrant, intellectually diverse communities that pave the way for a stable financial future. In recent decades however, the promise of higher education has become widely associated with chronic debt. As millions of American students plan to borrow thousands of dollars in federal loans to support their education, it is important to remember that college was not always a financial burden in the United States.
The conservative restructuring of public funding known as the ‘Reagan Revolution’ began.
There once was a time in America where college was affordable. During the 1979-80 academic year, the average cost of tuition at a public four-year university was $738. By the end of the decade, this figure jumped to $1,780, where it has only continued to rise ever since.
Although factors such as rising inflation and modernized campus resources may be credible factors attributed to rising tuition, perhaps the single largest contributor to high college costs lies in the actions of former California Governor and 40th U.S. President, Ronald Reagan.
As previously mentioned, the cost of tuition in the United States began to drastically increase starting in the 1980s. This time period also coincided with the presidency of Ronald Reagan, which was marked by significant budget cuts to a host of federal programs, including the Department of Education.
Prior to his presidency, Reagan served as Governor of the State of California from 1967-1975, where until the 1970s, tuition was completely free for all California residents. However, anti-Vietnam War protests occurring in college campuses across the state had drawn the disapproval of Reagan, who claimed that these acts were distractions from the learning experience these institutions were meant to provide.
Such sentiments were expressed by Reagan during his 1966 campaign for Governor, where he asserted that colleges were becoming hotbeds for communist ideology and that “The state should not subsidize intellectual curiosity,” according to NPR.
This was ultimately reflected in his budget proposals after he took office, as following his reelection in 1971, Reagan slashed state funding towards California public universities by 20%. For the first time in its history, California residents were obligated to pay tuition to attend college within the state.
California thus became the template for the ideological shift in attitude against funding higher institutions, as other states adopted similar budget-slashing measures to raise tuition for students. Whereas higher education was overwhelmingly seen as a public good for the better half of the century, Reagan ultimately pioneered its transformation into a hefty transaction for the ordinary American.
Instead of receiving educational grants provided by the National Defense Education Act that did not have to be repaid, Americans now became reliant on federal loans to compensate for the rapidly increasing cost of higher learning. This ultimately created a new dimension of indebted students who now depend on securing these loans or other private means of financial assistance to receive the same education that was provided at minimal expense a decade earlier.
“In 1966, American students took out $73 million in student loans. By 1981, when Reagan took office as president, that figure had mushroomed to $7.8 billion,” according to Best Colleges.
In spite of this unprecedented rise in student loan debt during that timespan, it pales in comparison to the immense student loan crisis that plagues students today. As of 2024, 44 million Americans owe a whopping $1.6 trillion in student loans, which is among the highest of all developed nations.
This continued during the eight years Reagan served as President of the United States (1981-1989), where he halved the federal education budget from 12% to 6%. Subsequently, following his departure from office in January 1989, the cost of tuition has increased three times the rate of inflation persisting into the modern day.
Since the Reagan years, some have claimed that public education in America is suffering a slow, painful death. Despite efforts from numerous presidential administrations to alleviate the burden of loan debt on borrowers, they have failed to repair the devastating blows public education suffered under budget cuts from Reagan decades ago.
Nonetheless, students, activists, and teachers alike have continually advocated for incremental improvements such as student loan forgiveness and tuition free community college. Scholarships also continue to remain a key financial assistance mechanism for students seeking higher education in America that are faced with financial hurdles. While these initiatives may only address specific problems in what is a much deeper-rooted issue within college affordability, they demonstrate the continued fight for the promise of higher education for all.
