Courtesy of The American Council of Trustees and Alumni

The American Council of Trustees and Alumni (ACTA) has released their annual state rankings of higher education performance. Using ACTA’s interactive tool, policymakers and taxpayers can instantly see how Illinois ranks on institutional finance issues, such as administrative bloat, and academic quality issues, such as free speech policies. They can also compare their state’s rankings to the rest of the country. The future of the economy, the health of our civic institutions, and the integrity of the national workforce depend on the strength of colleges and universities. Policymakers cannot assume that higher education institutions properly serve taxpayers and students without careful oversight. ACTA’s state rankings provide a snapshot of 10 data points that can be used to assess the current strength of higher education in Illinois. The ACTA findings include:

• IL ranks 44th in the nation for tuition as a percentage of media household income

• IL ranks 44th in the nation for speech code policies

• IL ranks 37th in the nation for core curriculum standards

“Students, families, and taxpayers deserve a public higher education system that prepares graduates for career and citizenship and stewards state funds appropriately. Lawmakers must ensure that colleges and universities meet these goals,” says Armand Alacbay, ACTA’s chief of staff & senior vice president of strategy. For more information, visit www.goacta.org/state/illinois