Where Was Education?

Tom Kucharski, President & CEO, Buffalo Niagara Enterprise

While understanding the constant refrain of jobs, jobs, jobs in our state and national elections, I found it curious the limited discussion about education and the important role it plays in economic development.

Colleges and universities are economic drivers by virtue of their own employment and the economic impact their student and faculty populations have on surrounding communities.  The twenty-three colleges and universities throughout Western New York have an economic impact of $3.2 billion on our region with $2 billion of that figure coming in the form of direct institutional spending.  There are approximately 32,000 full and part-time jobs at these institutions that generate $122 million in local and state taxes.  But the role higher education plays in economic development is much deeper than even these impressive numbers.

For the last several years now universities and higher education systems have been taking leadership roles in state and regional economic development efforts.  As predicted by a 2010 study by the Rockefeller Institute, this trend has continued as our nation and world move deeper into the innovation economy.  Research and the practical experience of economic development organizations like the BNE have found that the importance of innovation – the development and distribution of knowledge – is in many cases more important than traditional economic incentives.

Since 2007, twenty-three business expansion, investment and job creating opportunities that BNE worked with were actively seeking collaborations with higher education institutions.  In addition to their departments and programs, these institutions have infrastructures in place to support these opportunities with everything from physical space and consulting services to providing funding to support research and access to seed monies to accelerate commercialization.  Examples include the New York State Center of Excellence (COE) in Bioinformatics & Life Sciences, the NYS COE in Materials Informatics, the NYS Technology & Academic Research Center for Advanced Ceramic Technology at Alfred University, U.B.’s Office of Science, Technology Transfer and Economic Outreach (STOR) and the SUNY at Fredonia Technology Incubator.

Further evidence of the important role higher education plays in economic development can be seen in its active participation in recent state and regional economic development initiatives.  All ten of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s New York State Regional Economic Development Councils are co-chaired by presidents of higher education institutions within the region while being populated with education leaders from a range of colleges, universities and community colleges.  University at Buffalo Vice President for Research & Economic Development Dr. Alexander Cartwright represents the university on our BNE board of directors.

Here in Buffalo Niagara, the BNE recruits the assistance of individual departments and programs like U.B.’s school of engineering, dental school, department of research and economic development, Erie Community College’s dental laboratory technology program and more to actively engage in and support our research, marketing, business and economic development tactics and initiatives.

Preparing and populating the workforce of tomorrow is an obvious and important role of higher education in economic development.  By maximizing their strategic relationships with public and private employers, our education partners develop curriculum and implement job training programs that ensure the more than 22,000 degree and certificate holders they produce annually in our region possess the requisite skills to meet the needs of the region’s employers.

The economic development and revitalization impact, magnified in our region by the academic excellence of our schools in our region, also serves as a vehicle for attracting the best and brightest to Buffalo Niagara.  These young people become residents of and ambassadors for our region, improving the quality of life for all by supporting our economy and society in general.