2008
ECONOMIC IMPACT STUDY
PRESENTED BY:
KEN COPELAND
DIRECTOR OF ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT
Methodology
Two surveys were conducted in Spring 2008
 Faculty survey – 398 responses from 794 employees or
50%
 Student survey – 994 responses from 4727 students or
21%
Each survey asked respondents to list average
monthly expenditures in the Farmville area for all
types of consumer goods and services.
These amounts were added to total University
expenditures.
Economic Impact Multiplier
The idea behind an economic multiplier is that much
of the direct local spending from the University,
faculty, staff and students becomes income for
Farmville business owners and their employees and
suppliers. This local spending and re-spending of
dollars derived from Longwood’s activities implies
that the total impact is larger than the initial dollar
amounts. The authors of the report have used a “1.5
times” multiplier and believe this to be a conservative
estimate for the Farmville region.
Total Direct Longwood University Expenditures
2001
Expenditure
Farmville
$33.3 million
49.5
2007
Expenditure
$49.1 million
Surrounding Counties
$2.7 million
4.1
$10.4 million
11.5
Elsewhere
$31.2 million
46.4
$30.9 million
34.2
Total
$67.3 million
100.0
$90.4 million
100.0
Estimated Effect using
a Multiplier of 1.5
$100.9 million
Percentage
of Total
$135.6 million
Percentage
of Total
54.3
Longwood University Employee Expenditures
Expenditure
$15.7 million
Percentage of
Total
48.2
Surrounding Counties
$8.7 million
26.9
Elsewhere
$8.1 million
24.8
Total
$32.5 million
100.0
Estimated Effect using
a Multiplier of 1.5
$48.8 million
Farmville
Longwood University Student Expenditures
for Goods and Services in Farmville
Expenditure
Percentage of Total
Housing
$3,085,044
15.3
Utilities
$832,073
4.1
Groceries
$4,262,045
21.2
Entertainment
$3,253,680
16.2
Clothing
$1,372,866
6.8
General Merchandise
$1,292,313
6.4
Transportation
$3,296,223
16.4
Local Services
$420,280
2.1
Miscellaneous
$1,257,933
6.3
Medical Care
$971,077
4.8
$76,021
0.4
Total
$20,119,554
100.0
Estimated Effect using a
Multiplier of 1.5
$30,179,331
Child Care
Longwood University Visitor Expenditures
Expenditure
Percentage of Total
Employees' Visitors
$1.8 million
29.2
Students' Visitors
$4.3 million
70.8
Total
$6.0 million
100.0
Estimated Effect using a
Multiplier of 1.5
$9.1 million
Longwood University Expenditures in Farmville
(Direct & Indirect)
University
Expenditure
$7.3 million
Percentage of Total
14.8
Employees
$15.7 million
31.9
Students
$20.1 million
41.0
Visitors
$6.0 million
12.3
Total
$49.1 million
100.0
Estimated Effect using
a Multiplier of 1.5
$73.7 million
Other Contributions
• Longwood Center for the Visual Arts
– Approximately 10,000 people attended and volunteered at LCVA sponsored
offerings
• Longwood Center for Language, Literacy, and Learning
– Assisted over 350 people
• Sports and Athletics
– Approximately 15,000 people attended University athletic events
• Cook – Cole College of Arts and Sciences
– Music: 70 performances attended by approximately 10,000 people
– Theatre: 28 performances attended by over 4,900 people
• Dining and Catering Services
– 200 events and meals served to more than 100,000 guests
• The University Inn
– Approximately 1,000 guests and hosted numerous special events on-site
• Longwood Small Business Development Center
– Provided services to 492 small business clients with over 3,600 hours of one-on-one
business counseling and associated business assistance.