Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU)

The number of students graduating with debt from a 4-year public institution has declined by 10 percentage points compared to a decade ago, according to new data from The College Board. The average student at a 4-year public institution today pays only $2,480 in net tuition after aid is applied. In inflation-adjusted terms, that’s down by 40% over the past 10 years.  Thanks to public universities, their boards, legislators & governors, public institutions are able to provide an affordable, life-changing education to the vast majority of students in the U.S., APLU president Mark Becker notes in The Hill. https://lnkd.in/e92Ypt4e 

Public universities have driven significant and largely unheralded progress on college costs over the past decade: • Average net tuition and fees for in-state students is now $2,480 – down 40 percent over the past decade after inflation. • A majority of bachelor’s degree recipients graduate with zero student debt and average student debt among those borrowing down more than 17 percent over the past decade after inflation. When policymakers invest in higher education, students win. https://lnkd.in/ev3VRGgG https://lnkd.in/eQpuB64Z

Read on about the ways public institutions remain the most affordable, accessible path to higher education for low-income students: https://lnkd.in/eUphreRR 

Inflation-adjusted net tuition at public 4-year universities has dropped 40% over the past decade thanks to institutional efforts to control costs and state & federal investment, APLU president Mark Becker notes in The Washington Post. As a result, more than half of public 4-year university bachelor’s degree recipients leave with no debt. And those students who did borrow graduated with 17% less debt than 10 years ago.  https://lnkd.in/e6UuwP3Y

APLU is pleased to announce three finalists for the 2024 Degree Completion Award: The University of Kentucky, The University of Nevada-Las Vegas, and The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.  The annual award works to identify, recognize, and reward institutions that employ innovative approaches to improve degree completion while ensuring educational quality and excellence.  Stay tuned for the winner announcement at the #APLU2024 Annual Meeting on November 12! Read more about the Degree Completion Award and this year's finalists: https://lnkd.in/etRes4rN

Today, APLU President Mark Becker participated in a panel discussion on the launch of a new report from the National Conference of State Legislatures Task Force on Higher Education.     The report outlines how robust state investment in public universities and Pell Grants are crucial for college access and affordability while illustrating the extraordinary benefits of a public university degree for grads who power the world's most skilled workforce. #PublicUValues  https://lnkd.in/eK9XsF86 

APLU is excited to provide The University of North Carolina at Charlotte with a five-year extension of its Innovation and Economic Prosperity designation. The university has demonstrated a significant commitment to regional economic development and community engagement through an institution-wide strategy. Since receiving the designation in 2017, UNC Charlotte has seen significant growth in areas of #research and #innovation. The institution’s research portfolio is growing quickly, supported by organizational changes that leverage experts across research, community engagement, innovation, and economic development. The university has significantly worked to strengthen industry partnerships and the #workforce pipeline. As a result, UNC Charlotte has made notable strides toward establishing the institution as an engine for social mobility, innovation, and economic growth. Read on about UNC Charlotte’s plan to fuel innovation and economic development across the region: https://bit.ly/3Y8NZws

APLU is pleased to award the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a five-year extension of its Innovation and Economic Prosperity (IEP) designation. The university has leveraged stakeholders and the collective knowledge of APLU’s IEP community to build an innovative and successful strategic plan.  The university has built an intersectional #economicdevelopment and diversification ecosystem across agricultural and manufacturing industries. The result has been a coordinated approach across the state to respond to regional funding opportunities in #robotics, #biotechnology, and other rapidly growing industries. The institution’s focus on strengthening relationships with community, government, and industry partners, has allowed it to expand its impact and identify areas for further growth.  Learn more about the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's efforts to impact economic prosperity in Nebraska and beyond: https://bit.ly/3Y52fX8

As part of the association's ongoing effort to increase the societal impact of university #research, APLU is excited to announce a multi-year collaborative effort to identify and promulgate new approaches to support #faculty and researchers undertaking Public Impact Research (PIR). The Supporting Public Impact Research through Institutional Transformation (SPIRIT) effort is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and is in partnership with four member institutions — University of California, Davis; Penn State University; The University of Texas at San Antonio; and Washington State University — to pilot new approaches to increase more support for PIR on their campuses. Learn more about SPIRIT's upcoming work to advance public impact research at #publicuniversities nationwide: https://lnkd.in/ejr3m7cW

APLU is excited to provide Montana State University-Bozeman with a five-year extension in recognition of its work as a designee of its Innovation and Economic Prosperity program. The designation program encourages universities to expand upon current practices to further drive #economic growth, #workforce development, and #communityengagement across the region. Since initially receiving the designation in 2016, Montana State University has significantly invested in critical technology research, leading to a growing innovation hub in the region. The university then expanded its programming and degree offerings to help fill vacant positions generated by industry growth. Further, the university has made significant investments in campus infrastructure to strengthen the workforce pipeline and address a local need for long-term sustained economic development and growth. New projects include buildings for the School of Nursing, School of Computing, and a hotel on campus to support hospitality programming.    Read about the ways the University of Montana plans to build upon its success to expand its impact on all those it serves: https://lnkd.in/eaug-Gyx