Research On Development Of Financial Assistance Of Higher Education In U.S Federal Government

Financial Assistance of Higher Education of the Federal Government in the U.S. is adominant operating system and pattern which is used to regulate, control and lead thereasonable development of higher education. The financial assistance has experiencedhistorical stages of breeding, shaping, expanding, innovating and exceeding. It has formed anecosystem of financial assistance of higher education on the combination of the dominantmacro regulation and control of the federal government with the general innovation andchoice of market, and constructed an ecosystem of research and college student funding. Ithas made significant influence on the equity of higher education, innovation of science andtechnology and social development in America, which provided model pattern for globalhigher education and inspired the presented dissertation.Influenced by Protestant theory, Separation of church and state, evaded by Constitution,the financial assistance to higher education from the federal government was innon-intervention before the Civil War, private funding was dominant to the financialassistance to higher education in the early years of American history. Public EducationMovement, Westward Movement, and the strengthening of the country expedited theantecedent of the financial assistance. With the coming of the WWI, the great depression andthe plan to join WWII, national regulation and control was proved to be effective in America.Keynesian state intervention ideology affected the federal government policy on financialoperating system of higher education, and established the patterns of financial association.Influenced by the hegemony competition, cold war, policies of national welfare, civil rightsmovement and human capital theory, the expanding period of the financial assistance policyoccurred in1950’s and1960’s. The federal government attached more importance toefficiency, equality and investment of higher education, and strengthened the administrativeintervention. The scientific research funding and the college students funding projects weredefined in the form of laws. It was in this period that universities of federal funding occurredand “the Golden Time” of the higher education came into being. American higher educationhad been in turmoil till1970’s for the new economic crisis, university trust crisis and publicoption theory, which encouraged the returning of market assistance and its cooperation withthe government assistance. The federal government reflected and contracted its jurisdiction ofpublic functions. It adjusted the policy on the financial assistance of higher education, turned scientific research funding to civilian, and adjusted college student grants to the credits,which spotlighted the efficiency of the financial assistance. In1980’s, the theory of newconservatism leaded to the reform on the federal government public affairs. Regangovernment slashed the public budget expenditures, emphasized the importance of the rightsof state and market. Influenced by Education Cost-sharing Theory, the federal governmentdisintegrated the power of the state and market on financial assistance of higher educationtransversely or longitudinally. The reform of decentralization on the financial assistance wasgreatly spread and finally stimulated its mercerization. Since1990’s, Revolutions of EasternEurope has changed the world pattern. American hegemony conflicts with themulti-polarization. The federal government public policy was amended under the influence ofNew Public Management Theory. President Clinton applied “the third road” to regulate andstrengthen the federal government’s function on the financial assistance of higher education;the power of federation was strengthened and merged with the market rules. With the turningof21st century, under the circumstance of the global wave and the financial crisis, the newtendency of financial assistance policy has been emerged.Since Morrill Act was issued in1862to guide the higher education, the federalgovernment has been improving the mode of subsidy, regulating the funded projects, andadjusting the idea and direction of funding. It promoted the balanced and harmoniousdevelopment and merging of efficiency and equality in higher education, which hasaccumulated valuable ideas and historical experience, for instance, the pattern of financialassistance of higher education have been surmounted and improved; the competitive fundingmechanism was found, the legal operation and security was established, and the leadingfunction of the financial assistance policy on the national development was strengthened, etc.However, the compulsion of the Federal assistance brought some abuses in the historicalprocess, which has disturbed and even impeded the traditional spirit of independencetreasured by university.The system of financial assistance of higher education in U.S. was initiated, innovatedand matured with the dynamic development of the nation and its government. Thisexperience is of historical and critical significance to our central government to impel theprofound structural reform on the financial assistance of higher education in China.