8 Chapter 1: Introduction SUNY WESTCHESTER COMMUNITY COLLEGE’S (SUNY WCC) region, for the purpose of this report, is Westchester County in New York. While SUNY WCC offers a variety of programs, this study is concerned with the economic impact and return on investment derived from the students of four of its programs. These programs are the following: Business Information Technology Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing Healthcare The first component of this study analyzes the career outlook for each program. Each program maps to a number of occupations, which we use to measure the employer demand for graduates. We also provide annual median advertised salaries and top companies hiring in Westchester County. The second component of the study measures the economic impact from the alumni of each program. While the programs each affect the region in a variety of ways, many of them difficult to quantify, this study is concerned with considering the economic benefits of their alumni. The programs are designed to help students achieve their individual potential and develop the knowledge, skills, and abilities they need to have fulfilling and prosperous careers. However, SUNY WCC’s value consists of more than simply influencing the lives of students. The college’s program offerings supply employers with workers to make their businesses more productive. To derive results, we rely on a specialized Multi-Regional Social Accounting Matrix (MR-SAM) model to calculate the added income created in the Westchester County economy as a result of the increased consumer spending and the added knowledge, skills, and abilities of SUNY WCC students. Important note When reviewing the impacts estimated in this study, it is important to note that they are reported in the form of added income rather than sales. Sales includes all of the intermediary costs associated with producing goods and services, as well as money that leaks out of the region as it is spent at out-of-region businesses. Income, on the other hand, is a net measure that excludes these intermediary costs and leakages, and is synonymous with gross regional product (GRP) and value added. For this reason, it is a more meaningful measure of new economic activity than sales. WES TCHES T ER COUNTY, NEW YORK
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