City of Mesa Launches Mesa Educates U Campaign & College Scholarships

Posted on February 12, 2013 by

On behalf of the Office of Economic Development, we are pleased to announce a new campaign called “Mesa Educates U,” promoting Mesa as a premier destination for higher education. This marketing campaign is an initiative of Mesa Counts on College, a collaborative effort between the City, Mesa Public Schools and Mesa Community College, whose goal is to improve college completion rates in the City.

Mesa Educates U Cooperative Marketing Program

Mesa’s established institutions A.T. Still University, Chandler-Gilbert Community College and Mesa Community College are sponsoring the campaign in partnership with newcomers Albright College, Benedictine University, Upper Iowa University, Westminster College, and Wilkes University. The focus of the campaign is to raise awareness about Mesa’s higher education opportunities by providing a web-based, one-stop-shop to learn about and interact with the colleges and universities, www.MesaEducatesU.org, and also includes an advertising schedule,  an App, and a Facebook page. The Mesa Educates U website and App provide information about things to do in Mesa, how to choose the right school, and even how to pay for college – including details on the Mesa Educates U scholarship program.

 “We want everybody to know that Mesa is Arizona’s newest college town, with more than a dozen colleges and universities to choose from with programs in business, science, technology and education to name just a few,” Mayor Scott Smith said. “We are excited to partner with these institutions and Mesa Counts on College to show prospective students nationwide what we have to offer.”

The program is anchored by Discover U Weekend scheduled for March 8-9, 2013. This special event is designed to give prospective students a chance to meet with school representatives during signature events in Mesa, including Free 2nd Fridays in Downtown Mesa and a Chicago Cubs spring training game at Hohokam Stadium. Sign up to win tickets to the game and learn more at www.MesaEducatesU.org.

Mesa Educates U College Scholarships

Additionally, we are pleased to announce the new Mesa Educates U Scholarship Program being offered by several of the new colleges in Mesa. A partnership with four of the new liberal arts colleges expanding into Mesa, these scholarships will be offered annually to Mesa residents who have demonstrated strong academic performance and financial need. The scholarships will be awarded by the participating institutions as part of their admissions process. To find out more about education opportunities and Mesa Educates U college scholarships, join us for Discover U Weekend or visit www.MesaEducatesU.org.

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Mesa’s Higher Ed Conference & Expo Features New and Existing Post-Secondary Institutions

Posted on September 18, 2012 by

Mesa’s recently announced higher education institutions will come together with Mesa’s existing colleges and universities in one location on Friday, September 21, 2012 from 3:00-6:30 pm at the Mesa Arts Center in downtown Mesa.

The Mesa Higher Education Conference and Expo is being presented by Mesa Counts on College, a program funded by a $3 million grant from the Gates Foundation which focuses on increasing Mesa’s post-secondary completion rates. Educators, business and community leaders, students and parents will have the opportunity to learn about Mesa’s four new colleges and universities, Mesa’s existing post-secondary institutions and a new program being launched out of the Mesa Counts on College program.

Higher education is one of Mesa’s economic and workforce development initiatives put into effect under the leadership of Mayor Scott Smith and is represented by the acronym HEAT—Healthcare, Education, Aerospace, Tourism and Technology.

The City of Mesa’s Office of Economic Development has been successful in their pursuit of higher education institutions having announced the establishment of four, new liberal-arts colleges in Mesa in the past eight months. These institutions are: Albright College, Benedictine University, Westminster College, and Wilkes University.  Albright College will begin offering classes in the next few months while Wilkes University will begin its MBA program in Spring 2013. Benedictine University and Westminster College plan to begin their classes in the fall of 2013.

This opportunity to showcase Mesa’s educational assets will also highlight the city’s emphasis on workforce development and the fact that better education ultimately leads to jobs. Each of these new colleges are private, traditional, liberal-arts’ institutions that complement the existing community college and secondary education systems in the region. The Expo that follows the conference will feature representatives from more than ten universities and colleges with complimentary food and beverage being provided to attendees.

Registration is required and is available at http://tinyurl.com/mesaexpo. Please join the City of Mesa on Friday, September 21, 2012 from 3:00-6:30 pm and learn how you and others can engage and benefit from all that is happening in Mesa, the nation’s 38th largest city!

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Mesa plays key role in Arizona’s aerospace and defense industry

Posted on June 5, 2012 by

As one of the key players in Arizona’s collaborative pursuit of developing the aerospace and defense (A&D) industry, Mesa is strategically positioned to attract and grow additional companies in the high-tech sectors.

  • Arizona is one of the top five states for defense contracts and one of the top eight in A&D, serving as a hub for the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)/Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) industry.  Mesa is home to 12 aerospace, defense and aviation companies including Boeing; MD Helicopters; Lockheed Martin; Nammo Talley; Timken; ATK; and others.
  • Aerospace and defense is Arizona’s largest industry cluster employing 42,000 people and is a high-wage, knowledge-based cluster. Home to Arizona State University Polytechnic, two community colleges and ASU’s Aerospace & Defense Research Collaboratory, Mesa’s academic partners offer specialized training in aerospace technology, defense, science, and aviation.
  • The A&D industry contributes $8.8 billion annually to our state’s economy. As one of the state’s significant drivers in terms of payroll and taxes, the A&D industry provides $3.5 billion in payroll and produces about 12% of our state’s export activities. Recently, the City of Mesa just converted the former US Air Force Research Lab to the Arizona Laboratories for Security and Defense Research, retaining critical talent in the area and preserving the valuable high security clearance of the facility.

New opportunities

Currently, the focus of Arizona’s efforts is on the UAV and UAS business ventures. Unmanned aerial systems are being developed by Boeing in Mesa for other uses than just the defense industry’s UAVs. This same technology will be employed for other business-related purposes including use in commercial airlines. As a result, the FAA issued a mandate to designate and establish six national test sites where new flight-safety protocols will be developed for unmanned aircraft to be commercially ready for the national airspace by 2015.

Mesa has partnered with the Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA), Greater Phoenix Economic Council (GPEC) and the Arizona Aerospace & Defense Commission to develop proposals convincing the FAA to award Arizona several of these sites, two of which are in Mesa. This is part of the statewide effort lead by the ACA, GPEC and Science Foundation Arizona to attract more aerospace and defense contract providers, especially those in the UAV arena. Mesa and Arizona are both ideally positioned to increase our foothold in these industries. If you’d like more information about these efforts or any other Economic Development issues, please contact our economic development team at econdev.info@mesaaz.gov.

 

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National Study Ranks Mesa #7 for Use of Social Media

Posted on April 19, 2012 by

National Study Ranks Mesa #7 for Use of Social Media

In a recent study done by the University of Illinois-Chicago examining the 75 largest cities in the US for their use of social media, the City of Mesa came in 7th for its use of social media to communicate with residents. Overall, what they found is the top-ranked city governments in this study have made technology a priority, especially for transparency or civic engagement.

The study conducted from March through May 2011, examined the cities on their social media presence involving interactivity, transparency and accessibility attributes that encourage social engagement.

Specifically, Mesa was studied in 2009 and again in 2011 for its use of social media and also for basic civic engagement with items that are included on Mesa’s website such as: online newsletters, e-mail subscriptions, downloadable materials, RSS Feeds, virtual town halls, etc.

“As the 38th largest cities in the United States, we take pride in our efforts to use technology, especially new tools and trends, to communicate with the residents, businesses and visitors of Mesa,” said Mesa City Manager Chris Brady.

 More than six times as many big city governments reached citizens via Facebook in 2011 compared to 2009, while use of YouTube and Twitter grew fourfold and threefold respectively. The cities’ rankings reflected opportunities for citizen participation and information including:

– hosting of open data portals or apps
– comments allowed on blogs and social networks
– online discussions concerning policy and city services
– information on officials, budgets, city council meetings and neighborhood issues

Tied with New York at #1, Seattle has long been an innovator in this area, with programs to address the digital divide online and offline while New York has long used the web for transparency.

Twitter was used by 87 percent of the cities, compared with 25 percent in 2009. Facebook also was used by 87 percent of the cities, up from 13 percent. YouTube links appeared on the websites of 75 percent of the cities, up from 16 percent. Nearly all city sites allowed comments on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube and presented policy content such as discussions of city budgets.

As Director of Mesa’s Economic Development efforts, I’m very pleased that the Office of Economic Development has prioritized efforts to build a more robust and comprehensive social media program. Since January of this year, our office has launched a LinkedIn Mesa Economic Development group page attracting 395 members, this blog page and actively tweeted to more than 1,350 followers. We are very happy this is just one more step towards achieving Mesa’s objective as the 21st Century City of Innovation.


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Value defined: communities benefit from higher education

Posted on April 10, 2012 by

By Bill Jabjiniak, Economic Development Director

 We have all heard that getting an education pays, especially a college or post-secondary education. Education Pays, published by the College Board of Advocacy & Policy Center, inspires economic developers and workforce development practitioners to consider new approaches to growing an economy. Effective economic development programs must now incorporate efforts to attract and expand a well-educated population to drive short- and long-term community benefits, many of which are highlighted – and quantified – below.

The most recent three-year study (2007-2010) identifies significant differences for individuals with a college education compared to those without, and illustrates why higher education needs to be at the forefront of any contemporary economic development strategy.

  • Earnings: Higher average earnings for adults with college degrees were an important outcome of higher education. The typical bachelor’s degree recipient can expect to earn about 66% more during their 40-year working life than the typical high school graduate earns over the same period. Their earnings increased exponentially more with the number of years of education they have had.
  • Earnings over Time by Education Level and Gender: In 2008, median earnings for females ages 25 to 34 with a bachelor’s degree or higher were 79% higher than median earnings for females with a high school diploma, and the earnings premium for males was 74%. These earnings differentials were 60% and 54%, respectively, a decade earlier.
  • Education, Earnings, and Tax Payments:  Higher levels of education lead to both higher levels of earnings for individuals and higher tax revenues for federal, state, and local governments. For those who qualified for and received Medicaid, the 2010 census found that the percentage was three times higher for households with high school graduates ages 25 and older than those with a bachelor’s degree or higher.
  • Other economic benefits: The gap between the employment and unemployment rates of the two groups grew even farther apart. And because those with college degrees are more likely to be employed, they also have as a benefit health and pension benefits with their jobs. Consequently, they are less likely to need or rely on public income support payments and other public social services.
  • Social support programs: Estimates of savings to taxpayers in terms of the cost for providing public social services for individuals earning a four-year higher ed degree vs. those with just a high school diploma ranged from $32,600 for white women to $108,700 for black men.
  • Health benefits: The study found that behaviors such as smoking, exercise, obesity and other health related behaviors are highly correlated with education levels. Which then brings us back to the prior point that college graduates tend to have jobs with wellness programs and health insurance plans, and therefore if they do become sick, which is less likely according to the study, they will not have to rely on public programs for their illness.
  • Other societal benefits: College-educated adults have higher rates of voting and volunteering than others. They’re more likely to become involved in the community and contribute or provide services to others that otherwise would be paid for by taxpayers. For example, adults with at least a bachelor’s degree, 43% volunteered for a median 54 hours while among high school grads, 19% volunteered for a median of 48 hours. As for voting stats, the voting average for adults 25-64 with college degrees was 79% vs. only 53% for the same age group with high school diplomas.
  • Family Influence: Lastly, the study found that children in families where the parents graduated from college are more likely to enroll and graduate in college than those families with parents with no graduate degrees.

In Mesa, we believe that higher education IS economic development. Our existing post-secondary institutions like A.T. Still, ASU Polytechnic, Mesa Community College and Benedictine University opening in fall 2013, all provide quality education for our residents to obtain a degree that creates additional opportunities for a brighter future and produces individuals who contribute to the community in a myriad of ways.

To learn more, visit http://advocacy.collegeboard.org/sites/default/files Education_Pays_2010.pdf and www.mesaaz.gov/economic.

We would also love to hear from you. Use the comment box or links below. And if you would like more information on the City of Mesa, provide your contact information in the designated spaces at the bottom of the page. We look forward to hearing from you.

 

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Recruiting Higher Education in Mesa, AZ: Thoughtful and Deliberate

Posted on March 19, 2012 by

by Bill Jabjiniak, Economic Development Director, City of Mesa

A few years ago the City of Mesa began using the phrase “Turning up the HEAT in Mesa” to clearly define and promote Mesa’s industries of opportunity: Healthcare; Education; Aerospace/Aviation; and Tourism. Mesa’s City Council has focused heavily on progressive economic development practices to enhance these established sectors in Mesa with an emphasis on retention and expansion, as well as a renewed commitment to attracting additional assets.

The “E” in HEAT represents higher education and attracting additional post-secondary institutions is a top priority for Mesa’s City Council. The Office of Economic Development is responsible for implementing a recruitment plan for this strategic initiative, the long-term goal being to provide a skilled, trained and educated workforce to businesses and become a 21st Century City of Innovation.

Two years ago, the Office of Economic Development conducted research to fine tune the focus and ensure that the pursuit of enhancing higher education would be successful. Results from the Market Analysis and Feasibility Study revealed there was strong sentiment and support in the community from business leaders, residents and other academic institutions to recruit additional higher education resources beyond what was already in Mesa. In particular, people wanted private-sector, traditional four-year institutions (or graduate programs) that provided unique and complimentary programs to existing institutions. There was also a desire to recruit universities that centered on liberal arts education or niche-based programming such as engineering or technology. Community members expressed interest in colleges that offered diverse student populations, ranked nationally for quality education and expanded recently nationally and/or internationally for campus development.

In March 2011, the City of Mesa issued a Request For Interest and Information (RFI) inviting post-secondary institutions to expand to Mesa and become a part of our City’s vision – with specific development opportunities in Downtown Mesa. The RFI explained the goal to create a downtown campus of higher learning consisting of three to five colleges or universities with four-year and/or graduate degree programs aligned with Mesa target markets of Healthcare, Education, Aerospace/Aviation and Tourism.

Since that time, the City has hosted more than 15 prospective universities for community visits. Active participants in Mesa’s economic development efforts included Mesa Community College, Mesa Public Schools, Mesa Chamber of Commerce, AT Still University, members of the Economic Development Advisory Board and many more stakeholders. Already results are being realized.

Benedictine University (www.ben.edu) announced in January, 2012, plans to open its first branch campus in the US outside of Illinois in fall of 2013. Celebrating its 125th year, Benedictine has multiple campuses and more than 40 class sites including China and Vietnam. More accolades:

- Forbes magazine has named Benedictine University among the top 20 percent of America’s colleges for 2011.
- The Chronicle of Higher Education ranked Benedictine University as the seventh-fastest growing campus in the country among private Master’s universities between 2004-2009.
- U.S. News & World Report recognized Benedictine University as eighth in Illinois for highest average freshman retention rate for Master’s Universities in the Midwest for 2011.
- Benedictine University is ranked 12th in the Midwest and sixth in Illinois for Racial Diversity among Master’s Universities in the Midwest for 2011 by U.S. News & World Report.

The City of Mesa is proud to call Benedictine University our partner and looks forward to assisting Benedictine in their growth and development in Downtown Mesa.

In future blogs, we’ll let you know how higher education in Mesa is a win-win for both the city and the institution locating here along with more HEAT developments in Mesa.

We would also love to hear from you. Use the comment box or links below. And if you would like more information on the City of Mesa, provide your contact information in the designated spaces at the bottom of the page. We look forward to hearing from you.

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