View members

AASCU Legislative Action and Policy Center

Your source for federal legislation affecting higher education, advocacy efforts, state policy resources, and Congressional directory information. Read more

Letter to presidential candidates by the leadership of the six presidential associations suggests ways a new administration can work with higher education.

Policy Matters: Dedicated Funding for Higher Education: Alternatives for Tough Economic Times


Policy MattersIn recent years, there has been growing use of dedicated funding sources for higher education, but this practice is still quite limited. In view of economic uncertainty, a history of fluctuating levels of state appropriations to higher education, and the need to keep higher education affordable, we present some facts about dedicated funding practices in the states and encourage policymakers to consider all the possibilities. Read more   |   Download PDF

Policy Matters: Concealed Weapons on State College Campuses: In Pursuit of Individual Liberty and Collective Security


Policy MattersIn the wake of tragic shootings on college campuses in Virginia, Illinois and elsewhere, lawmakers in 17 states have introduced measures seeking to relax concealed weapons restrictions on college and university campuses. Download PDF





Latest in the Perspectives Series

"When Johnny [or Janelle] Comes Marching Home”: National, State and Institutional Efforts in Support of Veterans’ Education.

PerspectivesProvides an overview of veterans’ education issues on the national, state, and institutional level as well as highlights examples of innovative campus-based and organizational efforts to assist veterans and their families in utilizing GI Bill benefits and making the transition from combat to campus.


Public Policy Agenda 2008

AASCU’s Public Policy Agenda is rooted in an uncompromising commitment to opportunity for the nation’s students and expressed through the following core principles: Higher education is a common good that provides significant benefits to individuals and society as a whole. While the personal gains from higher education are widely acknowledged, the societal benefits are even more significant and lasting, thus warranting continued public investment. These include tangible returns through economic productivity and increased tax revenues, but even more fundamentally, through the promotion of an enlightened citizenry and greater social cohesion.


Top Ten Things to Like About the New Higher Education Reauthorization Bill

The recently passed higher education reauthorization bill is not perfect. There is far too much governmental regulation which results in excessive reporting requirements for all campuses, and several new provisions have increased the potential for abuse by private lenders. We would be remiss, as well, were we not to say that other concerns may surface as we work through the 1158 pages of this legislation. (Yes, that’s correct: 1158 pages.)

Cost Containment: A Survey of Current Practices at America’s State Colleges and Universities

Member institutions of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities are witnessing measurable success in identifying and implementing cost containment strategies in order to reduce operating costs.  Nearly all survey respondents at AASCU institutions place high importance on cost containment, with most having implemented cost control strategies in multiple operational areas. As a result, a majority of the state colleges and universities participating in this study indicated sufficient satisfaction with their cost containment efforts. Institutions rely more on support and business functions in their cost control efforts than on core academic functions. Energy management and consortium purchasing are the two most common areas of focus for cost containment.