Steve Kang: UC Merced: A catalyst for Valley's prosperity visaliatimesdelta.com Visalia Times-Delta and Tulare Advance-Register:
"Earlier this fall, the University of California, Merced marked a major milestone as we welcomed our fifth — and by far our largest — incoming class of students. Of the 3,400 students enrolled this fall, compared with just 875 in our inaugural year, nearly 100 are from Kings and Tulare counties. These results should make everyone in the Greater Visalia area very proud."
We all benefit when the doors of higher education are opened to the future leaders of our region, our state and our nation.
While enrollment growth may be the best single measure of year-to-year progress, economic investment may be the best measure of potential long-term impact. Solid growth continues on this front as well. Since UC Merced began administrative operations in 2001, the value of construction contracts awarded to San Joaquin Valley businesses and goods and services purchased within the Valley has reached more than $450 million. In Kings and Tulare counties alone, that number is about $3.3 million, while the statewide total is approaching $1 billion.
Although this growing level of investment hasn't been enough to offset the most difficult financial climate our region has seen in decades, it is clearly helping to stabilize the regional economy, create new jobs and position us well for future financial progress when the underlying state economy rebounds.
"Earlier this fall, the University of California, Merced marked a major milestone as we welcomed our fifth — and by far our largest — incoming class of students. Of the 3,400 students enrolled this fall, compared with just 875 in our inaugural year, nearly 100 are from Kings and Tulare counties. These results should make everyone in the Greater Visalia area very proud."
We all benefit when the doors of higher education are opened to the future leaders of our region, our state and our nation.
While enrollment growth may be the best single measure of year-to-year progress, economic investment may be the best measure of potential long-term impact. Solid growth continues on this front as well. Since UC Merced began administrative operations in 2001, the value of construction contracts awarded to San Joaquin Valley businesses and goods and services purchased within the Valley has reached more than $450 million. In Kings and Tulare counties alone, that number is about $3.3 million, while the statewide total is approaching $1 billion.
Although this growing level of investment hasn't been enough to offset the most difficult financial climate our region has seen in decades, it is clearly helping to stabilize the regional economy, create new jobs and position us well for future financial progress when the underlying state economy rebounds.