In Service to Others: The Economic, Community and Social Impact of Villanova University

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In 2019, Villanova University engaged Econsult Solutions, Inc. (ESI) to analyze Villanova’s economic and social impact. The report demonstrates the University’s significant contributions to and impact on Radnor Township, Delaware County and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Villanova’s statewide economic impact is nearly $900 million, which supports 6,120 jobs in the state with more than $460 million in annual earnings. This impact comes from the University’s ongoing operations, including the purchase of goods and services and the employment of more than 2,700 faculty and staff; its capital investments, which have averaged $120 million annually over the past five years; and the ancillary spending of students and visitors on food, lodging, shopping and entertainment locally and regionally.

The report also details the University’s contributions to Radnor Township, home to the University for its entire 177-year history. Villanova is the township’s largest employer and one of its most significant economic engines, paying direct taxes and fees of approximately $11 million to the township over the past six years. Villanova also has strong connections to the local business community through its civic engagement, procurement, and the demand generated by students and staff.

Villanova’s mission, rooted in its Augustinian Catholic values, calls students, faculty, staff and alumni to ignite change around the world, and that commitment begins close to home. Each year, for example, more than 5,000 Villanova volunteers give back at more than 100 sites throughout Greater Philadelphia, including more than 30 around the Main Line, during the St. Thomas of Villanova Day of Service. The report documents social impacts in to express the full impact of Villanova, and in doing so to convey the strong return it produces to students, communities, and society.