WESTFIELD, Mass., Jan. 26, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A newly released ranking by higher education expert Dr. Evan S. Dobelle quantifies per capita the economic impact of colleges and universities in larger metropolitan areas. Dr. Dobelle ranks the top 10 "Metroversity" or colleges and universities within metropolitan areas whose collaborative expenditures position them as major economic engines underscoring each area's transition from a manufacturing-based economy to a knowledge-based one.

"It is reality that higher education has become a major economic driver in mid-to-large markets. This change represents a shift in how these towns do business and how they think about themselves," said Dr. Dobelle, president, Westfield State University. "Understanding the value and extent of influence these institutions contribute should provide leverage for future economic development." 

The influence of Metroversities extends beyond teaching and research. They have evolved into the role of community and business partner, positively contributing to the quality of life for all who work, live, and study there. This is especially true as many metropolitan economies have experienced significant downturns in business, financial, and manufacturing activities while becoming home to larger numbers of students, now living and spending money in cities across America, who have become what Dobelle calls "permanent tourists."

Metropolitan policy experts agree. "In providing an empirical look at higher education expenditures and their multiplier effect, the Metroversities study helps to confirm the huge impact colleges and universities have on metropolitan economies," says Jennifer S. Vey, fellow, Metropolitan Policy Program, The Brookings Institution.

Specifically, Dr. Dobelle examines the metroversity economic effects in annual per capita higher education expenditures as well as the economic multiplier effect of those expenditures within a given metropolitan statistical area (MSA) and/or metropolitan division (MD). The economic multiplier is the amount spent by an institution's employees, students, etc. who buy enough goods to support additional numbers of other local jobs. Dobelle also breaks out annual business and finance expenditures as well as production expenditures.

Ranking of Top 10 Metroversity-Impacted Urban Areas:

1. Boston
2. Raleigh
3. Baltimore
4. San Jose
5. Philadelphia
6. San Francisco
7. Seattle/Nashville (tied)
8. Atlanta
9. Pittsburgh
10. Washington, D.C.

Dr. Dobelle published his first higher education economic impact survey in 2006, when he was president of the New England Board of Higher Education, one of the four federally authorized regional consortiums of colleges in America. His 2009 re-examination of the initial rankings was prompted in part by the change in the United States economy and the desire to track the evolution and growing sophistication of efforts by institutions of higher learning to save their cities from increasing blight.

Evan Dobelle is president of Westfield State University in Westfield, Mass. He has served as president of five other institutions of higher education, as well as in government positions at the federal, state, and local level.  Dr. Dobelle is an internationally respected educator and public official who has been honored for his hands-on experience spearheading public/private partnerships to significantly enhance the campus and community at each of the institutions he has led. He holds bachelors and master's degrees and a doctorate in Higher Education Administration from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a master's in Public Administration from Harvard University.

To view the complete study, visit www.westfield.ma.edu/metroversities.

CONTACT: Molly Watson, (413) 454-3926, mwatson@everestpr.com

SOURCE Evan S. Dobelle

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RELATED LINKS
http://www.westfield.ma.edu/metroversities