Moseley speaks with chamber of commerce

Franklin College president Jay Moseley and two other college officials spoke to Franklin Chamber of Commerce about the college’s impact on the city and surrounding areas.

Vice President for Enrollment and Marketing Alan Hill and Director of the Professional Development Program Jan Johnson joined Moseley for the presentation during the organizations monthly luncheon last Thursday. The presentation focused on a recent economic impact survey

The report, which studied the 2005-2006 fiscal year, concluded that the college provides advantages for the city of Franklin from offering a place of education for its residents whose lifestyles and earning capacities are enhanced by its programs to producing economic opportunities for local government and businesses.

Executive Director of the chamber Tricia Bechman said the chamber is always happy to have Moseley as a speaker. She said she heard he and Hill give the results of the economic report last year and thought it was something the whole chamber should hear.

"I don’t think they actually realize how many dollars Franklin College brings in per student," Bechman said.

Moseley agreed that it was important for the city’s business leaders to be aware of the study’s findings.

"I think it’s sometimes easy for people in any community to become complacent about what’s around them," he said.

While Moseley said he and his colleagues would answer any questions that chamber members had, no one took the opportunity following their conclusion.

Moseley said later Rob Schiltz of the Artcraft Theatre came and thanked him for the hours of community service students do for the city.

Among the information presented to the chamber found in the report:

The college contributed $57 million to the central Indiana area. The college, its employees, students and its visitors spent $38.9 million in Central Indiana. In addition, the college provided 281 full-time jobs and 110 new jobs in Central Indiana during that fiscal year.

Though some alumni end up leaving central Indiana, the report found that alumni earned an average of $10,605 more per capita annually than high school graduates. Since, at the time, there were 2,525 alumni in Central Indiana which computes $26.8 million in extra earnings that was added to the local economy.

Johnson spoke at length about the benefit of the numerous hours of volunteer service, students put in through programs such as FOCUS and Americorps.

According to the report, students contributed 20,000 hours of community service in Central Indiana valued at $103,000, computed at minimum wage. Staff and faculty spent a substantial amount of time giving time to the surrounding community as well.