This study, “Economic Contribution of America’s Community and Technical Colleges” (PDF link), was authored by CCbenefits (now EMSI) in 2004, and showcases the socioeconomic impact model (SEIM) framework used in EMSI’s college studies.

The analysis is based on a sample of 262 colleges in 14 states, representing roughly one-third of the current total enrollment in community and technical colleges in the country. The findings from the sample were used to generate results by inference for the some 1,200 colleges in the United States. Two major analyses are conducted: 1) investment analyses from the perspectives of the students and the taxpayers, and 2) economic growth analysis to determine the relative contribution to GDP by the community and technical colleges.

Some of the findings include:

• The average associate’s degree holder will earn $9,000 more annually ($325,000 lifetime) because of that degree.
• Associate’s-level education confers a number of benefits to students as well as the general public. The analysis translates the economic growth effect of community and technical college education into increased state and local government revenues (via increased tax receipts). Added to these are an assortment of social savings, e.g., avoided costs stemming from reductions in incarceration, welfare, health care support, and others.
• Taxpayers, who bear about 58% of community and technical college costs, receive a 16% return on their investment in the colleges—well above the 4% opportunity cost of funds.
• The bottom line: colleges return more to taxpayers than they cost.

In 2002, lawmakers on the Wisconsin Assembly’s budget committee began their biennial session to set the state’s spending priorities. In the wake of the dot-com bust and the 9/11 attacks, the national economy was starting to enter a recession and committee members were concerned about reducing state spending. Early in their deliberations, the committee voted to cut state funding for the state’s technical colleges by $14 million, or 10 percent.

To read on and see what role EMSI’s SEIM study played in this situation, open the full case study (PDF): Wisconsin SEIM Case Study

A new report from the National Commission on Adult Literacy, produced in conjunction with the Charles Stewart Mott foundation, finds that the U.S. is actually less educated than it was a generation ago, and that this extremely poor adult literacy (and, presumably, numeracy) will result in a decline in economic competitiveness. The report calls for a huge expansion of adult literacy and workforce training programs to serve the tens of millions of adults who are unprepared to contribute to the American economy.

Link to press release, full report.

A socioeconomic impact study by EMSI has concluded that Schenectady County Community College benefits its region to the tune of $330 million, the majority of which is due to increased student earnings and productivity resulting from their education. This factor, which plays a key role in EMSI’s methodology, is virtually ignored by most college impact studies.

“This report details the significant contributions that SCCC has made to the vitality of our local economy and to the lives of our students. It is important that our county and state taxpayers, as well as our students, know that the investment they have made in SCCC for nearly 40 years, has resulted in long-term positive financial effects for them. The report was created by an independent national firm utilizing many sources of data relating to the College and its economic impact on the local area. We want to share this report with members of our community to let them actually see the return on their investment and that our students, faculty and staff continue to be essential contributors to the economic stability of the county,” said Gabe Basil, SCCC President.

Read the full story here.

Ten years ago, when Dr. Robert “Rab” Thornton became Dean of Outreach Services at Housatonic Community College (HCC), the college had slow enrollment growth, very little interaction with the local business community, and low visibility in the state legislature. His duty was to reverse this trend and effectively “make an invisible college visible.”

Thornton quickly realized that one of the problems behind this was that the college primarily focused on enrollment figures when talking about its community value, and not on what stakeholders were truly interested in—economic revitalization, bottom lines, and return on investment. They were not communicating because they were speaking completely different languages. This discovery spurred Thornton to redirect HCC’s outreach efforts by looking for new ways to communicate the college’s real value to the community and state.

Read the full case study (PDF): Housatonic Community College: An urban renewal success story

Canada’s colleges, institutes, and polytechnics contribute CA $123.2 billion to the country’s economy every year, according to a study recently completed by Economic Modeling Specialists Inc. (EMSI). The study, which was commissioned by the Association of Canadian Community Colleges, also showed that students who attend these institutions receive a 15% return on their investment in education, while taxpayer support of the institutions offers a return of nearly 16%.

 ”This report clearly demonstrates that Canada’s colleges, institutes, and polytechnics play a vital role in keeping Canada prosperous and competitive, as well as benefiting students and their communities,” said James Knight, President of the Association of Canadian Community Colleges. “They more than repay the investment taxpayers and their governments have made.”

Other key findings highlighted by the ACCC’s media release include:

• The average annual earnings of a student with a one to two-year certificate are $36,582, or 35 per cent more than someone without a high school diploma or GED, and 12 per cent more than a student with a high school diploma. The average earnings of someone with a two to three-year diploma are $41,937, or 54 per cent more than someone without a high school diploma or GED, and 29 per cent more than a student with a high school diploma or GED.
• Colleges, institutes, and polytechnics contribute nearly $123.2 billion a year to income in Canada’s economy, roughly eight per cent of a typical year’s economic growth.
• Canada’s current workforce is enhanced by approximately 512.6 million hours of past and present college, institute, and polytechnic training.
• Taxpayers see a real-money return of 15.9 per cent on their annual investments in the colleges, institutes, and polytechnics and recover all investments in 8.7 years.
• Canada also benefits from improved health and reduced welfare, unemployment, and crime, saving the public some $215.1 million per year.

ACCC has also made the full report and associated materials available online.

A recent study by EMSI has shown Baltimore City Community College to have a total net impact of more than $540 million on its service area. The study was completed in January and released by the college on April 15th.

Highlights from the study showed:

• BCCC pumps $45.5 million in labor and non-labor income into the economy from operations and capital spending;
• BCCC students contribute $24.9 million in taxable income to the Maryland economy annually;
• For every dollar students spend on courses at BCCC, they will earn $4.40 in future earnings;
• BCCC saves Maryland $2.1 million each year through improved health and reduced welfare, unemployment and crime; and,
• Associate degree graduates from Baltimore City Community College who work in the region can earn $50,400 per year, 40 percent more than an individual with a high school diploma or GED.

Read the article here (Baltimore Business Journal).

EMSI is the international leader in impact studies for community and technical colleges, with over 800 studies completed for more than 500 colleges in the U.S., Canada, and the United Kingdom since 2001. Unlike many simple impact models which have been rightly criticized for inflating benefits and ignoring costs, EMSI uses a sophisticated proprietary model that requires detailed data and calculates the college’s true net impact of a college, along with a student and taxpayer investment analysis.

An EMSI gap analysis report is being used to inform a new Master Plan for Northwest Arkansas Community College in Bentonville, Arkansas. NWACC has reviewed input from multiple sources, including the EMSI report, and the consensus appears to be that the college needs to create a permanent presence in a neighboring county as well as establish a university center.

The task force got its first official look at all the compiled data, as well as information from the 2006 gap analysis, which was conducted by Economic Modeling Specialists Inc. A gap analysis looks at a community and determines what needs are being met and what needs remain unfulfilled. This is accomplished using public data and demographics, NWACC consultant Patti Mocivnik explained.

Susan Holmes, co-facilitator for the task force, said the results make the priorities quite clear. Certain types of programs, such as programs for medical professions, are clearly needed, but so is a type of program called a university center. University centers are programs in which other colleges and universities can partner with NWACC to provide their four-year degrees using NWACC facilities.

Read the full article here.

EMSI’s gap analysis drew on an integrated database of over 70 public sources to organize key demographic, economic, and labor market information for the college. The report was prepared as part of a statewide initiative that included similar reports for all Arkansas community and technical colleges.

Timely data and analysis from EMSI were critical for a recent gap analysis report performed for Kingsborough Community College in New York. The final report was created by EMSI’s partner Workforce Strategy Center, a New York based nonprofit, in the summer of 2007 and was recently released on their web site.

The report focused on tourism and hospitality, non-nursing health care, retail, and maritime industry sectors. In particular, the report helped inform the college’s newly-launched Project Welcome, an initiative designed to train students for careers in New York’s fast-growing tourism and hospitality industries. In a recent local news article, representatives from the college and Workforce Strategy Center lauded the project’s success.

Indeed, a year after the launch of the program, Project Welcome, Kingsborough Community College (KCC) is reporting success above and beyond what was initially predicted, opening the door to potential success for those just beginning their work careers as well as those making mid-life career changes.

Stuart Schulman, the director of KCC’s Center for Economic and Workforce Development, said that Project Welcome – which had been established thanks to a $1.7 million grant from the United States Department of Labor – had exceeded the federal requirements as far as the number of people trained is concerned. In addition, Schulman said that the program — which centers on a 280-hour, 10 week course — had also exceeded its goals in terms of placement.

The framework used by Workforce Strategy Center, known as “Career Pathways,” is designed to help workers get training for jobs in high-demand fields with clear opportunities for future career advancement. It has been successfully paired with EMSI’s wealth of regional labor market data in several workforce development projects around the country.

Community College Bridges to Opportunity Initiative: Started by the Ford Foundation, the goals of this initiative are (1) “Promote policy innovation which supports the integration of the multiple community college missions through selected engagement of policymakers, institutional practitioners, and multi-stakeholder coalitions of support from business, labor, and community groups, educational leaders and others; (2) Research ways in which state and local policies can enhance community colleges’ efforts to expand educational and economic opportunities for disadvantaged students; and, (3) Develop models of effective institutional classroom and administrative practice for use by policymakers, college administrators, and advocacy coalitions.” Be sure to check out their Community College Career Pathways Toolkit.