Barton County Economic Impact
For every dollar ($1.00) of revenue from Barton County Taxes, two dollars and sixty-one cents ($2.61) of additional revenue comes into Barton County from various other sources.
In October of 2022, Barton Community College commissioned a study to be conducted by the Docking Institute of Public Affairs to determine the economic impact of the college on Barton County. The purpose of this study was to estimate the magnitude of the economic impact of Barton Community College on the Barton County economy (including the City of Great Bend) for the most recent fiscal year, 2022. The source data for this model comes from a wide variety of sources that are collected and published by the U.S. Government and supplemented by proprietary data developed by Implan®.
- For fiscal year 2022 the total economic impact of Barton Community College on Barton County, Kansas was $30,012,000.
- There were 380 FTE (full-time equivalent) jobs in the Barton County economy because of Barton Community College, generating $17,121,000 in labor income.
- 323 FTE jobs in the county were college employees producing $14,891,000 in labor income.
- Barton Community College directly spent $7,160,635 on goods and services in Barton County.
| Impact Type | Employment | Labor Income | Output |
| Direct Effect: Actual money paid and spent by Barton Community College | 323 | $14,891,000 | $20,654,000 |
| Induced Effect: “Ripple” of money re-spent by employee households, local businesses, and service providers in Barton County. | 57 | $2,230,000 | $9,358,000 |
| Total Effect | 380 | $17,121,000 | $30,012,000 |
Source: Implan®
We have provided a copy of the full report for the public’s consideration here: Docking Institute Economic Impact Study
Impact of All Community Colleges on The State of Kansas
This study was commissioned in the fall of 2023 by the Kansas Association of Community Colleges and conducted by Lightcast. Data and assumptions used in the study are based on several sources, including the Fiscal Year 2021-22 academic and financial reports from Kansas community colleges and the Kansas Board of Regents, industry, and employment data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and U.S. Census Bureau, outputs of Lightcast’s Multi-Regional Social Accounting Matrix model, and a variety of studies and surveys relating education to social behavior.
- Kansas community colleges added $6.7 billion in income to the state economy during the analysis year via operations and capital spending; student spending; and alumni impact. For context, the $6.7 billion impact was equal to approximately 3.3% of the total gross state product (GSP) of Kansas. This contribution that the community colleges provided on their own is larger than the entire Information industry in the state.
- 1 of every 18 jobs in Kansas is supported by the activities of Kansas community colleges and their students.
- Kansas Taxpayers gain $2.20 in added tax revenue and public sector savings thanks to Kansas community colleges.
View a combined overview of the two reports: Combined Economic Impact Study