Massachusetts Maintains Historic Investment in Higher Education, But At Risk of Falling Behind Again

Hildreth Institute’s Statement on the FY27 Higher Education Budget:

In the span of a few short years, Massachusetts has invested in our higher education system like never before. The fiscal year (FY) 2027 budget largely maintains those investments in nominal terms, increasing overall higher education funding by a modest 4 percent. 

Those investments have undoubtedly paid off, as Community College enrollment has skyrocketed with State University and University of Massachusetts (UMass) enrollment stabilizing following years of decline. However, this bounceback in enrollment requires the Commonwealth to maintain momentum toward building up our public higher education system, or risk a quick backslide.

Investments in student financial aid have largely plateaued, leading to a three year decline in per student spending. This is particularly concerning when combined with the fact that the SUCCESS program, which provides support to help students graduate, has been flat funded at SUs and CCs. We know that student financial aid and student support services are major factors in helping students stay enrolled and complete their degrees. Without strengthened investments in these areas, we cannot hope to improve our completion rates at the Community College system, where we currently rank fifth worst in the country, or at the State University system, where roughly only half of our Black and Latino students graduate.

The Commonwealth has the resources to continue making progress and developing our public higher education system into one of the best in the nation and the world. The Fair Share surtax is what kicked off these historic investments. Yet while the Fair Share revenues have continued to grow, higher education spending from that pot has stagnated. In the FY24 budget, the Legislature allocated $229 million in Fair Share money (out of $1 billion total) toward higher education programs, kickstarting enrollment growth through the Free Community College program and MassGrant Plus Expansion. In the FY27 budget, with $2.7 billion in Fair Share funds to spend, $237 million was spent on higher education programs.

At a time when higher education faces declining public confidence, is under attack from the federal government, and is less affordable than ever, our public higher education system needs to be there for students by providing a world-class education and continuing to open up opportunities for economic mobility and civic contribution to the Commonwealth. We have the resources to make generational improvements to our public higher education system. We must prioritize making those investments now before this opportunity is missed.

An in-depth analysis of the FY27 higher education budget can be found here.