Several states are taking a hard look at high-profile student financial aid programs as they debate their budget priorities, searching for savings and reconsidering how they spend money on scholarship and grant programs.
In several cases, the issue centers on funds that help middle-class families, aid that some see as essential and others criticize as diverting public resources away from poor students who need them most.
Their discussions have not always grabbed the top headlines in a year when New York sucked up attention by creating a new tuition-free public college program -- and at a time when closely watched reports on state higher education finances and state-funded student financial aid have generally shown increases across the country. But budget debates unfolding in California, Louisiana and Oregon provide examples that even with a strengthening national economy, some states must prioritize amid budget crunches or questions about the most effective spending strategies.
Read more at Inside Higher Ed: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/05/24/state-aid-program-changes-debated-several-capitals