New federal law, emerging from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, made significant changes to federal funding for higher education. Most colleges and universities across the country must meet a new accountability standard to receive federal funds. Federal funds will now be administered based on earnings data for graduates alone, rather than a ratio of student debt to earnings used previously. The earnings metric must meet a specific threshold compared to earnings for those with a high school diploma.

In alignment with federal priorities, some states have introduced and enacted laws to prohibit funding for “low earning” or “underperforming” degrees as a part of workforce development and institutional efficiency goals. Most states that have introduced these types of policies are justifying program cuts with claims of aligning workforce demands and degree offerings.

Arts educators and leaders have expressed concerns about reduced access to creative educational experiences for students looking to explore post-secondary education in the arts. Below are states that have introduced or enacted state-level policies to begin removing or suspending programs at their state colleges and universities:

State Examples:

The State University System of Florida identified 214 programs across the 12 system institutions as underperforming based on the number of degrees issued during their 2025 program productivity review cycle. The system’s twelve institutions have planned to eliminate at least 18 of these identified degree programs, including Bachelor of Studio/Fine art and Bachelor of Visual Art, among others.

Indiana enacted legislation that requires the commission for higher education to evaluate accrediting agencies of state educational institutions and eliminate degree programs that have been determined to produce “low earning” graduates. Institutions who have identified “low earning” programs that are set to be eliminated must request approval from the commission to continue a degree program. Some of the degrees that have been or are set to be impacted by the new policies include a Bachelor of Arts in Music at Indiana University-Bloomington and a Bachelor of Arts in Dance at Ball State University.

Missouri introduced the Accountability for Low-Earning Outcome Degrees in Higher Education Act of 2026 that prohibits the allocation and use of state funds for academic degree programs that that satisfy the definition of a low-earning outcome program under federal law. The coordinated board for higher education is required to submit an annual public report to the general assembly on the affected programs, enforcement and fiscal impact of the prohibitions. This legislation has passed the Education Committee and will be on the way to the floor soon.

Ohio enacted a large higher education reform bill known as the Advance Ohio Higher Education Act in June 2025 that requires state institutions of higher education to eliminate undergraduate degree programs that issue less than five degrees annually over any three-year period. To comply with this new state legislation, the Ohio University has proposed to the Ohio Department of Higher Education a list of degrees up for suspension, including the elimination of Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interdisciplinary Arts, and a plan to merge certain programs with similar offerings.

Current Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education policy requires a review of all academic programs for quality and establishes minimum productivity standards every five years. The 2025 review cycle identified 357 “low-producing” degree programs offered at their state colleges and universities. In early December of last year, the State Regents moved to eliminate or suspend 62 of these programs. Some of the degree programs that are set to be eliminated across different institutions in the state include:

• Master of Arts in Drama
• Bachelor of Music in Piano Pedagogy
• Master of Arts in Theatre
• Bachelor of Arts in Music
• Bachelor of Arts in Music

Utah enacted the “Higher Education Strategic Reinvestment” in March of 2025 that requires public state colleges and universities to create a strategic reinvestment plan to reallocate funding from certain programs based on enrollment data, completion rates, wage outcomes, workforce demands, program costs and alignment with the institutions mission within the statewide system. The state is looking to eliminate more than 271 programs across colleges and universities. Last summer, the University of Utah submitted a list of over 80 courses, certificates and degree programs to be eliminated that includes:

• Bachelor of Art & Art History in Art Composite Teaching
• Bachelor of Art & Art History in Music Composite Teaching
• Master of Dance in Modern Dance
• Master of Dance in Ballet
• Doctoral of Theater in Theater

Future Considerations:

Funding uncertainties caused by these policy changes may result in challenges for students in their academic planning. Program sustainability will continue to fluctuate as higher education agencies conduct their evaluations of programs over the coming years. Although some states include clauses that allow currently enrolled students to finish their degree programs that have been set to be eliminated, this is not true for all. The elimination of certain programs is displacing students and faculty alike, particularly those directly affected by discontinued degree paths, and raising pressing questions about their next steps. How institutions intend to address these disruptions is still unclear, but some form of resolution will be necessary.

Americans for the Arts most recent Economic Prosperity Report (AEP6) found that the arts and cultural sector generated $151.7 billion in economic activity and supported 2.6 million jobs. With this, institutions should consider the multi-faceted ways in which artists often earn income, including gig work, art sales, grants, residencies and other non-tradition means. These types of earnings are more difficult to track, so it will be important for agencies to evaluate what data is being used to report on earnings metrics to ensure inclusivity of the many ways artists earn a living. AEP will continue to track policies that allow for the elimination of programs based on earnings and their influence on arts education accessibility across post-secondary institutions.