Emsi, a leading provider of economic impact studies and labor market data, recently
studied the impact of Pikes Peak State College and the others in the Colorado Community
College System.
Their approach was to examine the impact by studying what the local and state economies
would have been like without these institutions. In other words, it assumes that these
students would have been in the workforce anyway, but often working in lower-paying
jobs. This report assesses the impact on the regional economy and the benefits generated
by the college for students, taxpayers, and society. The results of this study show
that PPSC creates a tremendously positive net impact on the regional economy and generates
a positive return on investment for students, taxpayers and society.
Both Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers have
cited Pikes Peak State College as a primary engine powering the region's economy,
and the numbers from the Emsi study bear that out.