STUDY SAYS SEMO INJECTS $405 MILLION INTO REGION

Southeast Missouri State University pumps more than $53 million directly into the regional economy. Indirectly, the impact tops $405 million, shows a study released Wednesday at the university's Board of Regents meeting.

The study is conducted periodically to determine the impact of the university on its 25-county service region and Cape Girardeau County.

Dr. Bruce Domazlicky, professor of economics, oversees the research conducted by student members of the university's Economics Club.

Students looked at the value of direct and indirect expenditures, taxes paid and contributions made by the university, its employees and students. The students also calculated "human capital" created by the institution.

The study estimates that combined value at $405 million. In addition, $31.5 million in new construction, renovation and other projects are in the works.

The study calculates total expenditures direct and indirect combined at $102.3 million annually in the service area and at nearly $92 million annually in Cape Girardeau County.

Direct expenditures in the county were $47.7 million. Indirect spending, which calculates money as it circulates in the economy, was $43 million annually.

Economists use a multiplier to describe the circulation of money. A dollar, for example, may be spent by one person to become income for a second person, who in turn spends the money again. Multipliers of 4 to 6 are sometimes used in the studies, but the university used 1.9 for this study.

The study calculated goods and services bought by the university from regional vendors and suppliers, earnings spent by university employees, items bought by students and housing for students living off campus, and purchases by visitors attending university events.

The university employees and students also pay real estate and local sales taxes. In Cape Girardeau County, that figure was nearly $738,000.

The largest economic impact by the university, according to the study, is the number of skilled graduates who live in the area and earn an income as a result of their university training.

The study said that "human capital" totals more than $289 million annually in the region and $79.6 million in Cape Girardeau County alone.

The study determined the value of "human capital" by multiplying $13,900 -- the average additional annual income of a college graduate over someone with only a high school diploma -- times the number of graduates. The total was adjusted for regional unemployment.

The survey indicated that Southeast's impact on the regional economy has grown. In 1991, the direct impact was $48.9 million, compared to this year's direct impact of $53.8 million.