According to 2004 data analyzed recently in a Wall Street Journal blog, enrollment in four-year colleges by low- to moderate-income students decreased drastically in the years since 1994. The average cost of attendance remained the same proportion of annual income, representing about 48% of low-income families’ annual income, while moderate-income families’ burden was reduced from 26% to 22% during the same time period.

In addition, persistence in four-year institutions decreased to 75% for those beginning in 2003, down from 78% in 1995. The implications are made more serious by the economic climate in which college students find themselves at the completion of their studies – whether they graduate or not. With national unemployment rates highest among young people – even those with bachelor’s degrees – and more and more debt being taken on by students and families in order to cover rising educational costs, the attainment of higher education may be undermined by the financial crisis.