Pew’s snapshot shows at least 15 states proposed or enacted cuts to public-university funding this year, triggering tuition hikes, hiring freezes, delayed capital projects and maintenance backlogs. Examples include a 7% budget reduction across the University System of Maryland and a growing backlog in California public-university maintenance projects. Pew warns that sustained state retrenchment will reshape institutions’ operating plans. At the same time the State University of New York reported a 2.9% enrollment increase for fall 2025—its third consecutive year of growth—driven by community-college gains and first-time undergraduate enrollment. SUNY’s 387,363 headcount included a 5% rise at community colleges and gains tied to the Reconnect initiative for adult learners. The juxtaposition underscores a critical tension: enrollment upticks do not automatically translate to stable budgets when state funding retracts. Governing boards must reconcile rising operational needs with constrained state support and growing deferred-maintenance liabilities.