Raymond Borawski ‘28
Staff Writer
A few days ago Holy Cross released the results of a new independent study, conducted by the Philadelphia based economic consulting firm Econsult Solutions, which described the social and economic impact it has had on the city of Worcester and Massachusetts at large. The study, titled “People For and With Others: The Economic and Social Impact of the College of the Holy Cross,” showcases how that college itself directly generates nearly $1 billion in economic activity, and more than $313 million in Worcester alone. This comes as an extension of the ASPIRE program, set forth by the school’s President Vincent Rougeau, which holds six priorities, most notably, that the school should be “In and out of Worcester.” which highlights an administrative desire to become more involved in the community in a positive way. The report is broken down into four pillars, which collectively highlight the school’s total economic impact, with $2.39b in economic activity, 778m in labor income, and 10,510 jobs being produced, as well as an additional $39m in state revenue and $154m in federal tax revenue being raised indirectly, despite the schools tax exempt status.
Pillar 1 focuses on the school’s operations. It describes the schools budget of $258m, of which $145.8m, or 58% is dedicated specifically to around 1200 employees, making the college one of the largest employers in Worcester. It also describes the $72.5m the school spends on operations, and how that has led to a collective economic impact of more than $430m across the entire United States. Furthermore, with 12% of the school’s suppliers being small businesses, and a commitment to becoming fully carbon neutral by 2040, Holy Cross is making real progress towards tangible goals that will benefit its community in a meaningful way.
Piller 2, extends this analysis to capital expenditures, or expenses dedicated to maintaining or acquiring goods the school uses in its daily operations. The college spends roughly $28.4m on average per year on CapEx, including renovations to Loyola, the Prior performing arts center, and other similar projects. This spending provides around $62 million nationally in economic impact, and offers local construction work throughout economic cycles.
Pillar 3 showcases the economic impact of the 3200 students and 207k visitors who come to Holy Cross every year. Across the entire United States, these visits provide $55.5m which supports, both directly and indirectly, 310 full time jobs and $16m of employee compensation. The report also describes the 12,000 trips Holy Cross students make throughout Worcester, further contributing to the city’s economic development, and small business resilience.
Pillar 4, showcases the impact the premium Holy Cross alumni wages command has on the overall economy of the US. The paper describes the link between wages and education, and compares Holy Cross alumni earning to other alumni alumni earrings from similar private institutions, to find out what the Holy Cross premium is, and what kind of effect it has. The paper estimates that 70.1% of total alumni are working, and that Holy Cross alumni on average make $37,206 over Worcester residents without degrees, and around $16,000 more than Worcester residents who hold bachelor degrees from other universities. This data is validated by several external studies, most notably a 2022 study from Georgetown assessing ROI on several degrees from different universities. All of this has an annual economic impact of around $1.84b, which goes on to support 7,820 full time employees.
The final section of the report describes the social effects the school has on the city of Worcester. It details the 1200 students volunteering 24,000 hours through Community based learning programs, the 500 students volunteering 20,000 hours through the Student Program for Urban Development or SPUD, and the 50 students participating in paid internships for non profits. These hours are spent at youth services facilities, food pantries and most notably, other schools, where the College dedicates a significant amount of money and manpower.
This report showcases the extent to which Holy Cross is an active part in its community, reflecting the schools history of both shaping, and being shaped by the City of Worcester. Overall, the impact of the school reaches tens of thousands, bringing in billions in economic impact that would not exist otherwise.
Featured image courtesy of The Worcester Guardian
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