Students at public universities should be able to expect a great education at an affordable price.

That is part of the draw for these kinds of institutions. Unfortunately, for the past few years, that seems not to be the case.

Low-income families have had trouble sending their children to school in the past, but with the recent recession and rising tuition costs, it's becoming more and more difficult for families to meet the high prices of most universities.

Unfortunately, during this current recession, it is more important for students to attend college, as people look to improve both their skills and résumés. Low-income students have trouble meeting these high tuition costs.

A recent study by the Lumina Foundation for Education found that there are only five states in which all of the four-year schools are affordable for low-income students. Pennsylvania is not one of them.

Penn State does offer the Commonwealth Campuses as a more cost-effective option for some students; however, not all majors are available at every campus. Therefore, many students are left with no alternative but to transfer to University Park to finish their studies. Once there, they are faced with increased costs.

To add to the costs of college, it's very difficult for transferring students to find housing on campus and most are forced to live in off-campus apartments. However, State College rent rates are astronomically high, and student loans often don't cover off-campus living costs. Therefore, students are being penalized for living in off-campus apartments when, in actuality, they are given no other options.

Students, especially low-income students, should be able to depend on public universities' low prices. But here at Penn State, with lessening support from the state, the university is forced to raise tuition costs and accept additional out-of-state students to meet the costs of running a university of this size.

If states — especially Pennsylvania — continue to cut funding to public universities, low-income students will be denied higher education, at a great cost to society.