An economic impact study of Southern University at New Orleans (SUNO) released Thursday by the University’s College of Business & Public Administration titled “The Economic Impact of SUNO: Giving Taxpayers More for Their Money” reveals that the institution generated $111,461,082 on a state budget of just over $16 million during the fiscal year 2008-09.
Therefore, each dollar the state allocated to SUNO is multiplied approximately seven (6.83) times, meaning that taxpayers get a return of $7 for every $1 of state funding invested in SUNO. This is a conservative estimate, as many other studies have shown that the ratio of return on every dollar spent on higher education is as high as eight-to-one and beyond.
“This study does not take into account the adverse, socioeconomic opportunity costs of college-aged residents of New Orleans choosing not to attend college. This region, unfortunately, features many examples of what happens when persons do not pursue higher educational opportunities or if they are not adequately prepared or supported in taking advantage of attending college,” said Victor Ukpolo, Ph.D., Chancellor of SUNO.
The study also shows that initial spending of $71,017,329 during the current fiscal year led to 2,293 jobs being created externally by SUNO. Eight-hundred seventy-one (871) jobs are linked to spending for wages and salaries, 702 jobs are related to research and support services production, spending by undergraduates accounted for 549 jobs, and another 171 jobs were created via a variety of factors.
