SALISBURY — Reaffirming and quantifying what was already presumed, a study released last week revealed Salisbury University’s impact on the Eastern Shore economy is now approaching half of a billion dollars.
The study, conducted by the university’s Business, Economic and Community Outreach Network, or BEACON, revealed Salisbury University generates a $480.5 million annual economic impact and supports 3,287 jobs. With a community of roughly 10,500 students, faculty and staff, SU has had an increasingly positive impact on the area economy, growing by around $130 million in the last decade.
A steady, planned increase in student population, along with the hiring of new faculty and staff and a dynamic reconfiguration of the physical campus, including several notable construction projects have been the hallmarks of the increase of the school’s economic impact across the Eastern Shore. BEACON conducted a similar study a decade ago in 2005 and found the university’s local impact was around $351 million and supported the equivalent of 3,000 jobs.
Much of the recent growth spurt at the university has come under the watchful eye of President Janet Dudley-Eschbach, who is now in her 16th year. Dudley-Eschbach this week praised the partnerships the university has nurtured with the surrounding communities as the catalyst for the continued growth at the university.
“This study reaffirms the positive contribution the university makes to our region and beyond,” she said. “The strong partnerships between the campus and the greater community are also, I think, celebrated with these numbers. SU would not have the reputation or success it enjoys without its community partners and supporters. The university will continue to do all it can to help our students, region and state prosper.”
Salisbury University has nearly 8,700 students and roughly 1,800 full- and part-time faculty and staff on the payroll. The single biggest impact is the university’s $165.2 million annual operating budget. When a multiplier effect is taken into consideration with funds being spent in the local economy on goods and services, the overall economic impact then rises to over $240 million. In addition, the impact of student spending is another $90 million.
New construction projects at SU in the last decade or so has also contributed to the local economy to the tune of around $535 million. In addition, an estimated $112 million in additional funding is brought to the region by an SU-educated workforce, outreach programs and entrepreneurship activities.
“With nearly 9,000 students and 2,000 faculty and staff, Salisbury University has an unquestionably positive impact on our city,” said Salisbury Mayor Jake Day. “Salisbury University graduates over 2,000 bright, talented, young entrepreneurs, teachers, artists and scientists into the world each year, representing nothing less than the future of this community. Salisbury’s ongoing renaissance, creating a vibrant, cool place for these young minds to establish themselves is part of the symbiotic relationship that indeed makes us Maryland’s coastal college town.”
About a half an hour away in Ocean City, Salisbury’s economic, cultural and social impact is also felt, according to Mayor Rick Meehan.
“The relationship between Ocean City and Salisbury University is very strong and very beneficial to our tourism industry and local economy,” he said. “The students of the university are a reliable resource to our business community, filling hundreds of job openings in our resort year-round. In addition, many students find themselves staying in the area with job prospects beyond graduation, adding to the success and growth of Ocean City and the Eastern Shore.”