Three Northern New York private colleges, Clarkson University, Paul Smith’s College and St. Lawrence University contribute an annual $563 million to the economy and are directly and indirectly responsible for an estimated 4,200 jobs and more than $208 million in payroll according to a newly released study.

The new economic analysis by the Center for Governmental Research (CGR) found that
New York’s independent colleges and universities are major private employers in all regions of New York State with total payroll exceeding $19.5 billion for 360,200 direct, indirect and induced jobs.

More than 6,500 students enroll each year at Clarkson, Paul Smith’s, and St. Lawrence; about 57% are drawn from New York, 35% from out of state, and 8% from outside the United States. Detailed figures can be found online.

In nine of the state’s counties, the study found, private higher education employment represents five percent or more of total employment and six percent or more of total wages. In 2009 two of the top employers in New York State were private higher education institutions: Cornell University and University of Rochester.

In total, the 100-plus independent colleges and universities in New York State are believed to have contributed $54.3 billion to the state’s economy in 2009. This is an increase of $6.8 billion (up 14%) since 2007 and more than $12.9 billion (up 31%) from 2005. In 2009, direct institutional spending was more than $46 billion and academic medical center spending more than $4.3 billion.

The release of these updated figures complements those released by State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli in October 2010. The Comptroller’s report, The Economic Impact of Higher Education in New York State, stated “New York has the largest private higher education sector in the nation, with 167,450 jobs in 2009 – more than 40 percent larger than second-ranked California.” That report also noted that “Most of the growth in higher education employment this decade has been at private colleges and universities.

Editor’s Note: By way of comparison, the Olympic Regional Development Authority is believed to contribute about $271 million to the counties of Franklin, Essex, Warren, and Clinton.

Photo: Matt Barkalow of Paul Smith’s College woodsmen’s team. Photo by Pat Hendrick.