NH Fiscal Policy Institute report details that NH trails all other states in public education funding
While nearly half of the 10 occupations for which demand is projected to grow the most over the next decade require postsecondary education, and when the average earning of those with college degrees exceed those with high school diplomas by $30,000, New Hampshire’s investment in pubic higher education is the most miserly of the 50 states.
This is the conclusion of a report authored by Nicole Heller, senior policy analyst at the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute.
The report opens by cautioning that the current tight labor market could be further strained in economic sectors by the lack of qualified personnel. Heller notes that four of the 10 occupations projected to be in greatest demand during the next decade — and three of the top five — require college degrees.
Relatively low levels of state funding contributes to higher tuition rates, prompting a significant share of high school graduates to enroll in colleges and universities in other states. Others forgo postsecondary education altogether, jeopardizing their future earnings and career prospects. Those attending New Hampshire’s public colleges and universities are more likely to graduate with student loan debt, hindering their capacity to anchor their working lives on a sound financial footing.
Both community colleges and universities invest much less than their counterparts in other states as measured by dollars per “full-time equivalent student,” calculated by dividing the number of credits all students are taking at an institution by the number of credits needed for a full-time course. In 2022, the appropriation per FTE for two-year institutions was $7,872 compared to the national average of $10,141 and for four-year institutions was $3,422 compared to the national average of $9,596.
Drawing on data from the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEOA), Heller provides three metrics that indicate New Hampshire trails all other states in public education.
The first measure is population. For every person in New Hampshire, the state appropriated $106 for public higher education — less than a third of the nationwide average per capita of $338. To reach the national average, the state would have to appropriate $464 million, about $318 million more than was budgeted in 2023.
The second metric represents appropriated funds per $1,000 of personal income.
In 2023, New Hampshire, where the median household was $89,992, appropriated $1.43 per $1,000 — $128.29 for public higher education compared to the national average of $5.22.
Finally, SHEEOA reports the state funding per “full-time equivalent student” for fiscal year 2022, the most recent comparative data available, as $3,699, or 36% of the national average of $10,237 and the least of the 50 states.
Heller reports that the death of state funding raises the cost of further education for New Hampshire students and families. Tuition payments represent 72% of the revenue to fund public higher education in New Hampshire compared to the national average of 42%. Tuition accounts for 42% of the revenue of community colleges and 80% of the revenue of the university system.
New Hampshire’s four-year institutions charge the highest tuition and fees among the neighboring states, ranging from $14,588 at Plymouth State University to $19,112 at the University of New Hampshire — numbers approached only by the $18,890 at the University of Vermont. Only the universities of Vermont and Massachusetts charge higher tuition for out-of-state students.
These high costs, Heller suggests, may contribute to relatively high student loan debt carried by 70% of graduates of New Hampshire colleges and universities, the second highest proportion in the country, whose average debt of $39,950 is the highest in the country.
Cost likely accounts for a share of the 56% of New Hampshire high school graduates who pursue their higher education in another state, a percentage topped only by Vermont. Likewise, cost may dissuade others from pursuing further education, which could lead to shortages of registered nurses and nurse practitioners, software developers and engineers, accountants and auditors, financial and investment analysts, education administrators and school teachers, as well as other positions requiring a college degree.
The report closes by stressing that greater investment in higher education will widen the opportunity for New Hampshire’s high school graduates to prepare for successful careers, while ensuring the state of the talent required to sustain its economic growth and prosperity.
