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2016-2022 EDUCATIONAL AND FACILITIES MASTER PLAN
ECONOMIC CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE COLLEGE CHAPTER 1 – BACKGROUND

ECONOMIC CONTRIBUTIONS instruction received by former students now in the
OF THE COLLEGE workforce. The total average annual income to the
local economy totals $313.6 million. The overall
Once agricultural, most of the district’s service area impact of COC on the local business community
now encompasses widespread housing and com- during the analysis year amounted to $313.6 mil-
mercial development. Several large industrial and lion in gross regional product (GRP,) equal to the
commercial centers have blossomed, and the col- sum of the operations spending impact, the student
lege is appreciated for providing these companies spending impact, and the alumni impact. The
with high-quality workforce training. $313.6 million in GRP was equal to approximately
2.7percent of the GRP of Santa Clarita Valley. By
College of the Canyons has outstanding support comparison, the contribution the college provides
from the community at large, which most recently on its own is nearly as large as the entire regional
supported general obligation bonds in 2001, 2006, Accommodation and Food Services industry.
and 2016. These bonds have provided the district
with the financial resources to build the classrooms, A SOLID FOUNDATION IN THE
labs, student services areas and support spaces that COMMUNITY
are critical to providing a vibrant and healthy edu- The College also creates and nurtures relationships
cational environment. that provide the foundation for the success of cur-
rent and future partnerships with local school dis-
COC has served as a gateway to higher education, tricts, colleges and universities, businesses, govern-
professional training and opportunity for the more ment and nearly every social service agency. These
than 285,000 people who have attended since partnerships advance the educational, artistic, civic,
the college opened its doors to students in 1969. cultural and economic aspirations of the quarter
Thousands have graduated, and many students public of COC graduates living a more productive million residents of the surrounding community.
have returned to pursue their professional careers. and healthy lifestyle, California taxpayers realize a
Sixty-one percent of the College’s staff members 9.3% return on their tax investment. Several of these innovative partnerships have
were once its students. redefined the traditional role of the community
COC has a positive effect on the local economy college, such as these operated at COC by the
HIGH RATE OF RETURN in three ways: Hart District:
With a significant socioeconomic impact on the • Academy of the Canyons, opened in 2002,
region it serves, from an investment perspective 1. Through its local purchases, including wages allows promising high school students to
COC delivers a high rate of return on the funding paid to faculty and staff; attend high school and college concurrently;
it receives, and the College contributes in measur- 2. Through the spending of students who come • Early College High School, funded by the Bill
able ways to the economic growth of the area. from outside the District; and and Melinda Gates Foundation, opened at the
3. Through the increase in the skill base of the Canyon Country Campus in August 2007 and
According to a September 2015 study conducted local workforce. in 2008 moved to the Valencia Campus.
by Economic Modeling Specialists, COC graduates • Career Pathways Trust grant to create guided
enjoy a 16.7% rate of return on their investment The annual monetary contribution from these pathways in CTE areas.
of time and money by earning $10,300 more per three factors are, respectively, $82.8 million from
year on average compared to those with only a high local spending, $1.2 million from non-local An additional 903 local high school students are
school diploma. Including the avoided costs to the student spending and $230 million from COC concurrently enrolled at COC.

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