This reply is for serious grad students(not for Undergrad; some UG also gets funding, but tuition is too high for them) so it is for them who is looking for good study with no distraction while getting tuition funded. If you are looking for a big city environment, this does not work. Two of my friend also looked for TA/RA/GA didn't get these easily in other University, but when they applied at Clarkson University in Potsdam(Science,Technology  and Engineering University in northern NY), they got it. It's in a small college town(population 16,000 and with students 24,000) where there are 2 universities in the town and another two universities in 8 miles of distance. The town is small, but a lot diverse comapred to the total population. A lot of Indian, chinese  students from Clarkson are there as they are everywhere in grad schools. Perfect for graduate students who need funding. Clarkson is a research University(mostly MS and PHD program). Admission is not too tough,but a lot of funding opportunities are available  if you meet their requirements. Here is the website and some recent info about the university.

https://www.clarkson.edu/

http://www.clarkson.edu/news/2011/news-release_2011-09-13-1.html

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/12-colleges-job-payoff-harvard/story?id=17273504#.UFtfpK7xyO3http://

p.s. I am just sharing this info because I was in that situation when I was looking for an affordable and good grad school in my time. I am just trying to help people. You do a research and decide on your own. For a student tuition matters a lot and if funding is available then that's the best option I always go with and I do not pay attention on other secondary things.