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January 14, 2020

UConn president touts university’s $5.3B economic output

HBJ Photo | Sean Teehan UConn President Thomas Katsouleas unveils study on the university's economic impact. (Pictured: State Sen. Tony Hwang (left), House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz, Gov. Ned Lamont and Katsouleas)
By Sean Teehan

UConn President Thomas Katsouleas unveiled a report Tuesday in Hartford that says the state’s flagship university generates $5.3 billion in economic activity for the state. 

The report is part of a broader public relations push UConn is undertaking to demonstrate its significance to Connecticut’s economy and it comes weeks before state lawmakers open the 2020 legislative session, where topics like higher-education funding could be on the table.

The report also comes at Katsouleas begins his first full year as UConn president, where he has already set an ambitious mandate to double the school’s research funding from about $265 million to $500 million over the next decade. 

At a press conference Tuesday, Katsouleas made the connection between UConn’s research and its economic output. He also touted a one-time funding scheme to offset higher costs researchers pay to work out of UConn than other research universities.

“This is a short-term, Band-Aid solution, but we are hopeful we’ll be able to work with the state to find a more lasting one in the future,” Katsouleas said. “Growing research will not only make for a stronger university, it will dramatically enhance our economic impact on the state.”

[Read more: Under Katsouleas, 2020 will mark beginning of innovation, research ramp up at UConn]

With his “Band-Aid solution,” Katsouleas is using about $4 million from UConn’s academic budget to offset the fringe costs researchers incur when working out of UConn facilities. Katsouleas didn’t say on Tuesday what a long-term solution might look like, but left the door open for an increase in state funding.

PHOTO | Contributed
UConn's flagship Storrs campus.

The economic impact study UConn released Tuesday, which was written by UConn faculty economists, found the university’s total economic impact on the state amounts to $5.3 billion annually. Authors reached that number by adding together factors like the amount of money UConn spends, business-to-business spending as a result of UConn’s spending and spending by UConn employees.

Gov. Ned Lamont said he sees UConn’s future as being comparable to high-profile research institutions like Stanford University and Duke University in its potential impacts on the state’s economy.

“We’re beginning to build out our university network,” Lamont said. “But UConn is the hub of our economic future."

The study’s findings include:

  • UConn generates about $5.3 billion worth of economic activity in the state.
  • UConn directly and indirectly supports nearly 26,000 jobs in Connecticut.
  • UConn contributes $277.5 million in state and local tax revenue through industries that benefit from UConn’s business.
  • For every dollar spent by UConn, about 77 cents of economic output is generated in the state.

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