Black and Hispanic families in Louisiana are disproportionately affected by cuts in state support for higher education, according to a report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities touted by the Louisiana Budget Project.
Average tuition and fees at a public four-year university accounted for 32% of median household income for black families in Louisiana and 23% for Hispanic families in 2017. This compares to 16% percent of median household income for white families.
Only six other states charge more for tuition and fees than Louisiana, when measured as a share of median income for black households, according to the report.
Louisiana cut more state funding from higher education than any other state, on a per-pupil basis, since the 2008 start of the Great Recession. To make up for those cuts, Louisiana more than doubled the tuition it charges students.
The shift in the burden of paying for higher education has affected families at all economic levels, but has been especially tough on students from low-income backgrounds.
Louisiana has the merit-based program, TOPS, that helps many undergraduates avoid heavy debt burdens upon graduation. But the GO Grants program, which provides need-based support for students who qualify for federal Pell Grants, has been underfunded, the Louisiana Budget Project says in a news release. Â Â
While the $28.4 million allocation to GO Grants for the 2018-19 school year is an all-time high, it is only $2.4 million more than what was allocated during the 2008-09 school year.
