With state higher education funding largely being determined based on prior year allocations, state policymakers seek the latest research and guidance in how to revisit funding structures. In many states, funding inequities and inadequacies across institution types are inherent and can be very difficult to change. The reasons behind such stratification are important to consider, especially as research shows that students of color and low-income students are disproportionately likely to attend poorly resourced institutions.
States have expressed interest in establishing a baseline understanding of inequities and inadequacies in funding for institutions in their state but lack the capacity to determine what this should look like for their public institutions. This project seeks to provide states with resources to assess or analyze funding adequacy and equity while increasing the research and practical base of understanding regarding how to approach and address unintended disparities in state higher education finance.
This project is supported with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Joyce Foundation, Lumina Foundation, and Strada Education Foundation.
Analytic Framework and Learning Community
SHEEO collaborated with the research team at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Student Success Through Applied Research (SSTAR) Lab to develop an analysis framework for funding adequacy and equity. Informed by a working group of higher education finance policy experts, this framework can be used to build awareness around existing disparities in funding levels and distributions by sector, institution, and/or student populations of interest and further identify appropriate measures and methods for assessing funding disparities. Eight states (Colorado, Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, Oregon, Tennessee, and Wisconsin) participated in a learning community from September 2024 – September 2025 to help further shape and inform the framework.
A Framework for Conceptualizing and Analyzing Equity and Adequacy in Postsecondary Funding Models: Amberly Dziesinski, Nicholas Hillman, Leslie Orrantia. Supporting resources include an accompanying dashboard and data files.
Additional Research and Resources
In efforts to share best practices and research among the higher education policy field, SHEEO hosted bimonthly equity and adequacy finance partners convenings with the purpose to gather, discuss, and share ongoing or completed work that examines equity and adequacy in higher education finance across a multitude of individuals and organizations. Additionally, SHEEO funded six research projects to advance understanding of the levels of distributions of funding needed to advance higher education goals.
For questions about this project, contact Dustin Weeden, Associate Vice President, at dweeden@sheeo.org.