CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. – Campbellsville University had an almost $300 million economic impact from its operations on the main campus and in her Louisville, Harrodsburg and Somerset regional centers for fiscal year 2020, according to a study by Younger Associates of Jackson, Tenn.
The $295.6 million finding is a measure of the total value that flows through the operations of Campbellsville University and three of her regional centers.
A Kentucky-based Christian university with more than 12,000 students offering over 100 programs of study including Ph.D., master, baccalaureate, associate, pre-professional and certification programs, Campbellsville University generates economic impact from ongoing operations, related activities and investments in capital improvement projects, according to Dr. H. Keith Spears, interim president. Economic impact is also generated by student and visitor spending in the local economy.
Campbellsville University is pleased to make a positive financial impact to city and county governments, school systems and certain special districts, Spears said, and is “very fortunate to be in communities where education, including postsecondary education, is valued.”
The study, said Dr. John Chowning, executive assistant to the president, documents the economic impact the university has on Campbellsville-Taylor County and the commonwealth. “The economic impact of our education centers in Somerset, Harrodsburg and Louisville, is growing with each year of operations in those communities,” Chowning said. “The total economic impact, number of jobs created, and generation of local and state taxes – these are all important measurements of how CU has become an important economic anchor in our local community and state.”
Spears said, “We are all aware that there is a direct correlation between the educational attainment of a community and the economic health and competitiveness of a community. Campbellsville University remains dedicated to providing affordable and excellent higher education, and we are working with local officials, our school districts, Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Authority, and others to provide additional postsecondary educational opportunities for more citizens.”
Spears said Campbellsville University’s commitment to student affordability is further evidenced by the more than $80 million in total financial aid provided by the university to all students enrolled during the past year. The economic impact study measured total economic output, jobs, wages and local tax revenues generated.
Younger Associates has completed hundreds of economic impact studies across the United States for the past 30 years.
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—By Joan C. McKinney, director of university communications
