The cost of higher education in the country has increased greatly over the past 30 years. Also, the U.S. economy, Valerie Calderon says, has been growing at a slower rate. This has made some American families think twice about investing a lot of money in a costly degree program, she says. Fewer students are enrolling in higher education programs, the National Student Clearinghouse found. The organization studies American education. Last year, it reported that the overall number of students in higher education programs was 1.5 percent less than the year before. So, why have the costs of higher education gone up so much? Calderon says part of the reason is because schools are employing more administrators. “Colleges have employed more highly paid professionals who don’t teach, driving up the ratio of workers per student,” she told VOA.