September 30, 2024
Sorry, Harvard. Everyone Wants to Go to College in the South Now.
Jason Owen-Smith talked to the Wall Street Journal about the benefit to local and regional economies when universities experience growth in student populations:
“Growing universities create a snowball effect for local and regional economies—especially research universities. More undergraduates means more customers to patronize local businesses. They can also help underwrite graduate programs that support researchers who bring in grants. That grant money is often spent with local vendors to build out labs, which, in turn, may generate new knowledge, patents and startup businesses that hire people. Those businesses may then attract more high-paying employers to the region.”