A Letter From The President
Dear Friends,
Humboldt State's economic benefits to the North Coast community are significant in financial terms, and invaluable in putting human talent to work in highly productive ways. As you'll see in the arresting figures on these pages, the university infuses a combined total of more than $216 million annually into the Humboldt County economy. HSU payroll (wages plus benefits) is $86.3 million annually. The university is the county's second largest employer, and one in 14 Humboldt County residents is part of the HSU community.
HSU degrees add millions of dollars to the lifetime earning power of county residents. University operations pour $5 million each year into local business coffers, fuel new construction to the tune of almost $8 million, and constantly advance environmentally-sound energy technologies.
Taxpayers and businesses alike share in these tens of millions of dollars that return to us. This is enhanced by the vigorous fundraising programs championed and managed by the Office of University Advancement, the main engine of campus development. These monies are crucial to maintaining HSU's vitality amid severe state fiscal constraints. In addition, public education is an extraordinary value for the money, here at home and across California.
In human terms, HSU contributes enormously to the entrepreneurial spirit of the North Coast community, providing creative capital, state-of-the-art research, and a wealth of services and information to employers and employees. Humboldt State boasts literally hundreds of vibrant relationships with community partners, through its Office of Economic and Community Development, Service Learning Center, Career Center, Department of Economics, Schatz Energy Research Center, North Coast Small Business Development Center, Redwood Coast Rural Action team, and its illustrious trio of colleges: the College of Natural Resources & Sciences; the College of Professional Studies, and the College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences.
This document provides a summary of the extraordinary multiplier effects generated by Humboldt State and the CSU, fortifying the North Coast economy.
Warmly,
Rollin Richmond
