In the US, the share of family income required to cover the cost of college rose from 42% in 1971 to 114% in 2011. #readingToday

Mettler laments state disinvestment from universities, a privatization trend that raised the tuition burden for students who can least afford it. One telling chart in her book shows that for the lowest-earning quintile of Americans, the share of family income required to cover the cost of attending a public four-year college in 1971 was 42 percent. In 2011 it was 114 percent.