In fiscal year 2020, the University System of Georgia (USG) served as a significant source of stability and played a critical role in the state’s recovery with an $18.6 billion statewide economic impact. USG’s impact grew 0.6 percent over fiscal year 2019. The system directly and indirectly generated 155,010 jobs.
The annual study of the USG’s economic impact shows that East Georgia State College (EGSC) had an $70,056,633 impact on the communities in its region during fiscal year 2020. For the purpose of this study, EGSC’s service region includes Emanuel, Bulloch, Candler, Jefferson, Johnson, Burke, and Toombs Counties. The institution serves a far larger region, however.
The economic impact study found every dollar spent directly by USG institutions and their students generated an additional 47 cents for the surrounding region’s economy. While $12.7 billion of the $18.6 billion was a result of that direct spending, the remaining $5.9 billion was additional spending within local communities sparked by the presence of a USG institution.
In terms of jobs generated, 34 percent were on-campus positions (52,904 full-time equivalent University System employees), while 66 percent (102,106 jobs) were off-campus in either the private or public sectors. That means for every person employed at a USG institution or the system itself, two people have jobs that support the presence of the institution in the local community. EGSC had a regional employment impact of 774 jobs. This employment impact includes on-campus positions and off-campus jobs that exist due to the institution.
The economic benefits are estimated for several important categories of college/university-related expenditures: spending by the institutions themselves for salaries and fringe benefits, operating supplies and expenses, and other budgeted expenditures; spending by the students who attend the institutions; and spending by the institutions for capital projects (construction). The economic impact estimates are based on regional input-output models of each institution’s regional economy, certain necessary assumptions, and available data on annual spending in the specified categories. Moreover, the emphasis is on funds received by residents in the region that hosts each college or university. The study reports expenditures and impacts for the 2020 fiscal year—July 1, 2019, through June 30, 2020.
The annual study is conducted on behalf of the Board of Regents by Jeffrey M. Humphreys, Ph.D., director of the Selig Center for Economic Growth in the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business.
Information from East Georgia State College.
