Each state is affected differently by the policies put in forth by the state and federal government. Through our readings I was able to identify the major differences on each state’s higher education system in regards to preparation, participation and completion. As it stated in the reading, “New Mexico is a high effort, low performing state.” Which means that the state is attempting to create a better structure and impact the higher education system, but the results are not positive. In New Mexico, the organization of the higher education system is ran by each institution and not by the state, which has created a problem in the performance levels. The need to provide merit based funding is mainly because most of the population in New Mexico have a lower median income and a there is a higher poverty rate than the national average. As a result, New Mexico is one of the states with the highest assistance from the state government. In the late 1990’s, the state started a merit aid program, which is huge in higher education, because it means that more aid is available for students to attend college. …show more content…
More and more students are being placed in remedial math and english courses due to the lack of high school preparation. For example, one university stated that 50% of students are taking remedial education. There has been attempts to create plans that will align high school curriculum with college placement requirements, which will make he transition from high school to college easier for students. The state has implemented programs that utilize tests and intervention strategies to assist with the preparation of students for higher