A bigger factor than pretty much all of this, for state universities, has been that state support for universities has dropped through the floor. Washington St

A bigger factor than pretty much all of this, for state universities, has been that state support for universities has dropped through the floor. Washington State, for example, got state support cut by 50% during the 2008 recession. It's never come back. This also has an impact on one of HN's other favorite higher ed topics, the state of quality research. With state support cut, the two available levers are tuition and more federal research money. With the latter, the pool of money is - at best - stagnant, and there's increasing pressure to get grants, which means more people cutting corners.