FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

RICHMOND — The State Council for Higher Education of Virginia (SCHEV) released two new reports and an analysis related to financial aid trends and recommendations, and the cost and funding need study.

Financial Aid at Public Institutions of Higher Education in Virginia: This report examines trends in state financial aid and comprehensively profiles how federal, state, institutional, and private aid impact how students finance their education. The report finds that Virginia’s average state awards’ purchasing power has declined as tuition has increased, and that low-income students have higher unmet need than middle- and high-income students. SCHEV also published an Insights post to connect the report to SCHEV’s budget recommendations, which recommended a $150 million increase in the next biennial budget.  

Virginia Cost and Funding Need Study Interim Report: The 2021 General Assembly tasked SCHEV with reviewing higher education costs, funding needs, appropriations and efficiencies. This interim report includes the initial findings from the review of funding policies in other states, a compilation of trends in costs at Virginia’s public institutions and to comparable public institutions in other states, and principles for the development of a funding model. A final report is due July 1, 2022. Details of the cost study, including this report and the work plan are included on the cost study webpage.

The full reports and all SCHEV reports are available at schev.edu/reports. All Insights are available at www.schev.edu/insights.

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Media resources including news advisories, logos and releases are available at www.schev.edu/media.

The State Council of Higher Education for Virginia is the state’s coordinating agency for higher education. With Pathways to Opportunity: The Virginia Plan for Higher Education, SCHEV is dedicated to making Virginia the best state for education by 2030. For more on this statewide strategic plan, visit schev.edu/TheVirginiaPlan.