Economic Impact of FLCC

FLCC promotes economic growth in the Finger Lakes Region* through direct spending and as a result of student and business expenditures. The College is a major regional employer and a purchaser of local goods and services.

In addition, FLCC is a primary higher education provider to the Finger Lakes Region residents and a supplier of trained workers to regional industries, enhancing overall productivity in the regional workforce.

Operations Spending Impact

During the 2020-2021 fiscal year FLCC:

• Employed 476 full-time and part-time faculty and staff, 75% of whom lived in the Finger Lakes Region.
• Paid $33.7 million in payroll, much of which was spent in the region for groceries, mortgage and rent payments, dining out, and other household expenses.
• Spent $14.1 million on day-to-day expenses related to facilities, supplies, and professional services.
• Added $35.4 million in income to the region during the analysis year.

Construction Spending Impact

During the 2020-2021 fiscal year, FLCC construction spending generated $1.7 million in added income, which is equivalent to supporting 19 jobs.

Student Spending Impact

Around 10% of students attending FLCC originated from outside the region in FY 2020-21, and some of these students relocated to the Finger Lakes Region to attend FLCC. While attending the College, these relocated and retained students spent money on groceries, housing, transportation, and other household expenses.

During the 2020-2021 fiscal year, FLCC student spending generated $5 million in added income for the regional economy, which supported 74 jobs in the Finger Lakes Region.

Alumni Impact

The education and training FLCC provides for regional residents has the greatest impact. Today, thousands of former FLCC students are employed in the Finger Lakes Region. As a result of their education from FLCC, alumni receive higher earnings and increase the productivity of the businesses that employ them.

During the 2020-2021 fiscal year, FLCC alumni generated $155.8 million in added income for the regional economy, which is equivalent to supporting 1,853 jobs.

* For this report, the Finger Lakes Region is defined as Ontario, Wayne, Seneca, Yates, Livingston, Monroe, and Steuben Counties.

An investment analysis evaluates the costs associated with a proposed venture against its expected benefits. The analysis presented here considers FLCC as an investment from the perspectives of students, taxpayers, and New York residents.

Student Perspective

During the 2020-2021 fiscal year, FLCC served 5,414 credit and 511 non-credit students. In order to attend the College, the students paid for tuition, fees, books, and supplies. They also took out loans and will incur interest on those loans.

• The total investment made by FLCC students amounted to a present value of $25.4 million, equal to $13.6 million in out-of-pocket expenses and $11.8 million in forgone time and money.
• In return for their investment, the average FLCC associate degree graduate will see annual earnings that are $7,300 higher than a person with a high school diploma or equivalent working in New York.
• Over a working lifetime, the benefits of the associate degree over a high school diploma will amount to an undiscounted value of $313.9 thousand in higher earnings per graduate.
• The present value of the cumulative higher future earnings that students will receive over their working careers is $123.6 million.
• Annually, the students' investment in FLCC has an average annual internal rate of return of 17.5%, which is impressive compared to the U.S. stock market's 30-year average rate of return of 10.5%.

Taxpayer Perspective

FLCC generates more in tax revenue than it receives. Benefits to taxpayers will also consist of savings generated by the improved lifestyles of FLCC students and the corresponding reduced government services.

• By the end of the FY 2020-21 students' working lives, the state and local government will have collected a present value of $51.7 million in added taxes.
• Altogether, the present value of the benefits associated with an education from FLCC will generate $6.7 million in savings to state and local taxpayers.
• Total taxpayer benefits amount to $58.4 million, the present value sum of the added taxes and public sector savings.
• The average annual internal rate of return for taxpayers is 4.8%, which compares favorably to other longterm investments in the public and private sectors.

Social Perspective

Society as a whole in New York benefits from the presence of FLCC by increasing the state's economic base and generating social savings through improved student lifestyles.

• Altogether, the social benefits of FLCC equal a present value of $555.2 million.
• These benefits include $344.4 million in added student income, $154.6 million in added business income, $43.6 million in added income from college activities, and $12.6 million in social savings.