Higher Education and State Workforce Productivity in the 1990 S

tion—which have long-term consequences in terms of both private and public benefits and the well-being of society—should not be based on quick reactions to short-term fluctuations of the business cycle. Instead, state budgets for higher education should be carefully planned and calculated to maximize public benefits per dollar spent for the state’s population.2 Investment in higher education yields two types of benefits.3 Private benefits, such as differences in earnings between college and high school graduates, accrue primarily to those students acquiring the education.4