According to an independent report by Lightcast, a global leader in labor market analytics, students and alumni of the Alabama Community College System (ACCS) contributed $8.1 billion to the state’s economy, an amount equal to about 3% of Alabama’s total gross state product.
The report also states Alabama’s community colleges support 114,043 jobs in Alabama, which is equivalent to one in every 26 jobs. While the ACCS plays a role in attracting and retaining talent, its greatest impact comes from its graduates. In FY 2023-24 alone, ACCS alumni generated $6.9 billion in added income, supporting the equivalent of 96,200 jobs in Alabama.
Singularly, Marion Military Institute (MMI) was measured for its own economic impact in the Lightcast report. The following findings demonstrate how MMI creates value in many ways, playing a key role in helping cadets increase their employability and achieve their individual potential. Additionally, MMI benefits Alabama’s economy as an employer of state residents and a large-scale buyer of goods and services.
• Total MMI Economic Impact = $29.8 Million or 428 Jobs Supported
• The average MMI associate degree graduate will see annual earnings $9,600 higher than a high school graduate working in Alabama. Over a working lifetime, that will amount to $460,800 in higher earnings per graduate.
• The cadets’ benefit-cost ratio is 5.0; for every dollar cadets invest in MMI, they will receive a cumulative value of $5.00 in higher future earnings.
• The cadets’ investment in MMI has an average annual internal rate of return of 14.9%, impressive compared to the U.S. stock market’s 30-year average rate of return of 10.1%.
• Total taxpayer benefits amount to$3.7 million in added tax revenue and public sector savings.
• The benefit-cost ratio for society is1.4; for every dollar invested in MMI, Alabamians will receive a cumulative value of $1.40 in benefits
Lightcast analyzed data using FY 2023-24 academic and financial reports from Alabama’s community and technical colleges, the Alabama Technology Network, as well as industry and employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau.
