Exploring the Costs of California Community Colleges and Implications for Funding
Community colleges are an essential part of higher education in the United States, offering affordable and accessible routes to economic advancement. However, it remains uncertain whether these institutions have the resources necessary to help all students persist, graduate, and progress through postsecondary education at levels aligned with state goals.
To date, there has been little rigorous research to guide policymakers on what it would actually cost to provide all community college students an equal opportunity to succeed.
What This Study Does
AIR’s research on community college costs in California and related work in Texas are intended to prompt a fundamental change in how we think about funding community colleges across the country.
This study examines California’s community college system and introduces a new method for estimating the cost of giving every student an equal chance to learn.
Drawing on decades of use in the K-12 education finance literature, this work applies advanced cost function modeling techniques to the community college sector. This approach allows us to assess how state goals, along with various student, college, and other factors, influence the costs required to ensure equal educational opportunity.
In addition, we offer a comprehensive community college funding policy scan that documents how states account for different types of costs in their funding mechanisms. This allows policymakers to compare the funding adjustments in their current state formulas with cost‑based adjustments derived from rigorous empirical analysis.
Policy Implications
Our method offers a replicable, evidence-based approach that generates findings state policymakers can use to make informed decisions about funding allocations, and determine what resources are needed to expand postsecondary opportunity for all community college students.
