Dr. A. Hope Williams, president of North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities, or NCICU, said the finding shows the “continued macroeconomic impact” of private, nonprofit colleges in the Tar Heel State.
“This report highlights that independent higher education is a rapidly growing, high-yield driver of commerce, jobs, and community infrastructure across North Carolina,” Williams said in a statement. The $38 billion impact includes support for 154,342 jobs, $16.1 billion in labor income, and $5.6 billion in tax revenues, according to NAICU.
The report states that more than 69,400 people are employed by North Carolina’s independent colleges and their affiliated networks. Of those employees, about 43,100 are directly employed as faculty, administrators and staff. Close to 26,300 are employed within the Duke University Health System.
“This shows the vast healthcare and clinical research architecture directly linked to the state's independent higher education infrastructure,” NAICU stated in a press release.
The organization noted that NCICU’s 36 campuses enroll about 84,000 students annually and thus serve as a “primary pipeline for the state’s professional workforce.”
“These campuses confer one in four of all bachelor's degrees and one in three of all professional degrees awarded in North Carolina,” the NAICU press release states.
