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SCHOOLS ECONOMIC BOOST FOR COUNTY

By Ezra Mann/OF THE COMMERCIAL STAFF
Saturday, August 2, 2008 10:42 PM CDT

Having two higher learning institutions in Pine Bluff and Jefferson County not only means more educational opportunities, but also means a boost to the economy.

Dr. Hank Campbell recently addressed the Pine Bluff Rotary Club about the economic impact that SEARK College and UAPB have on Pine Bluff and Jefferson County. Pine Bluff Commercial/Ralph Fitzgerald

Dr. Hank Campbell, dean of the school of business and management at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, discussed his findings in a presentation entitled the “Economic Impact of Higher Education Institutions in the City of Pine Bluff and Jefferson County.”

Campbell, a member of the Pine Bluff Rotary Club, presented the program to club members last week.

The total economic impact from the budgets of UAPB and Southeast Arkansas College is $129.7 million and increases when one considers benefits of athletic events, student/family visits to campus, new grants, contracts and capital projects, according to Campbell.

Campbell challenged his audience to press for additional funding for higher education based on the benefits afforded to students and the community as well.

Both sources of higher education also impact the employment outlook in the county with SEARK employing 367 and UAPB having 1,412 jobs.

“We bring a vitality to the community that would not be here otherwise,” Dr. Lawrence A. Davis Jr., UAPB chancellor, said Wednesday. “It creates a lot of economic energy.”

Additional economic factors include annual commencements for each institution, GED/Workforce training at SEARK, 5,428 donated hours to the community from UAPB, more than 10 cultural or entertainment venues from UAPB and training workshops at SEARK, said Campbell.

Homecoming alone at UAPB generates more than $3 million, an important event for the community because of its impact on local tax revenues, creating and retaining jobs in Pine Bluff and an increase in use of services such as Pine Bluff Transit.

“What we do in the community is what education does as a whole,” Dr. Phil E. Shirley, president of SEARK, said Wednesday. “We’re absolutely together and unified on that ambition which creates a ripple effect in the community.”

Shirley also said that both SEARK and UAPB are in the life changing business and the results can be seen when the young people who enroll pass the tradition along to their children.

Campbell and Shirley both noted that together, the higher learning sources provide a way to break out of poverty, which can be seen as a goal with 22 percent of residents in the county making $15,000 or less a year.

The indirect benefits of higher education are also noticeable when graduates have greater earning power, reduce unemployment assistance costs and generate more tax revenue at all levels, added Campbell. Citizens and businesses as a result should appreciate and embrace higher education which will help create better leaders and improve chances of succeeding financially.

“Because we are here, we compliment each other’s programs,” said Davis about the cooperation between each institution. “We’re developing potential.”

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