**NORTHERN COLLEGE NEWS RELEASE**

Northern College is pleased to announce the results of a yearlong look at the College’s economic impact across its catchment region. The study, conducted by Emsi Labour Market Analytics, looked at the College’s contributions across both the Cochrane District and Temiskaming District, providing insight into both annual contributions and long term alumni employment impact.

The study found that the College had contributed nearly 125 million dollars into the regional economy, the equivalent of 1,165 jobs, accounting for 2.4 per cent of the region’s gross regional product. This places Northern College as the 11th largest industry in the region (or accounting for almost half of all educational services spending in the region.)

“Intuitively we know that Northern College has a dramatic economic impact within the communities it serves, however intuition needed to be borne out by an objective third party, skilled at economic impact assessment,” stated Northern College President, Dr. Fred Gibbons.

“Throughout the year to come, we will be taking every opportunity to highlight this newly quantified impact analysis in town hall meetings, blog posts and events, ensuring that both our college community and the community at large are aware of Northern College’s economic impact,” added Gibbons.

Throughout the fiscal year of 2016-2017, Northern College invested over 29 million dollars in payroll to its 508 employees, 93 per cent of whom live and spend those dollars on food, housing and social services within our catchment region.

This past year the College welcomed 487 students into the region, accounting for an estimated 1.6 million dollars in new local spending. As the College continues to reach further afield to draw students to its campuses, the region will continue to benefit; as 72 per cent of all students who take classes at our four campuses stay in the region after graduation.

“Attracting and retaining students throughout their programs of study is important to the sustainability of not only our college, but to the entire region. Our highly skilled graduates are in demand by local employers and this in turn contributes to the sustainability of local businesses, industry and our communities,” stated Gibbons.

This high rate of retention has contributed to a gross economic contribution from Northern College alumni in the region of almost 86 million dollars across multiple industries.

Northern College is proud of these findings, confirming its longstanding role in the region both as an economic and societal contributor to the continued diversification and growth of Northeastern Ontario.