by Autumn A. Arnett

In a panel during the annual meeting of the Coalition of Urban and Metropolitan Universities Monday, college leaders from around the country agreed: the biggest challenge facing public higher education today is the dwindling state support for the enterprise. Beyond that, however, finding ways to reassert the value of the degrees they offer was the top concern for many.

Stephen Jordan, president of Metropolitan State University of Denver, said at his institution, staff members are “having to reconcile in our minds that the likelihood of increased state support is zero” — they expect that “somewhere around 2025, there will be no funding in higher ed.”