State Divestment in Higher Education and Students of Color Attending Four-Year Public Institutions in Illinois

This correlational quantitative study examined a five-year (2014-2019) trend to analyze whether there is a relationship between the level of state funding and the enrollment and graduation rates of students of color attending public institutions in Illinois. For the purposes of this study, the students of color include the following groups: African American, Latinx and Native American students. Previous studies have shown that divestment in state funds have cause shortages in staffing, experienced faculty, and support services for students attending public institutions. However, there is very little research on the direct relationship between state funding and the collegiate success of students of color versus their white peers. Historically, public institutions have heavily relied on state funding for their budgetary responsibilities. In the state of Illinois, state funding has significantly decreased for higher education. As a result of the funding gaps, there is a trickledown effect to students, creating larger tuition costs that impact affordability and accessibility to public education for students of color. This study used bivariate Pearson r coefficient correlational tests to evaluate the hypothesis that there is a significant relationship between the level of state funding to higher education in Illinois and the enrollment and graduation of students of color as well as scatterplot/graph to determine linear and nonlinear relationship between the variables over a five-year period of study. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]