Executive Summary

• A History of Working Together:
  Notre Dame and the Community
• Notre Dame: Michiana’s Largest Employer
• University Spending Supports
  St. Joseph County
• New Income for St. Joseph County
• Campus Provides Local Services
• A Place of Pilgrimage:
  Notre Dame As a Destination
• Focus on Community Development
• Notre Dame Invests in
  Neighborhood Revitalization
• Contributing to Culture in South Bend
• Using the Wealth of Educational
  Resources to Help the Community
• Forging a Future Together

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Notre Dame's Economic Impact
on South Bend

University Spending Supports St. Joseph County

The University began to grow into a center of scholarship and research in the early 20th century, ushering in a new era. As academic buildings replaced stables and fields, Notre Dame became a community consumer, impacting the regional economy through its expenditures and those of its students and visitors. Spending by students, faculty, and staff creates demand for retailers, restaurants, and other businesses. Supported by that spending, those businesses hire additional workers to serve the University-related markets.

The University's expenditures in St. Joseph County outweighed the revenues it receives from local sources by a factor of almost 10—putting in $274 million more than it took out of the local economy.

• The University put $833 million into the community
• $536 million was spent by Notre Dame in purchases of goods and services, including $305.9 million spent in St. Joseph County
• The University has made $37.5 million in expenditures with South Bend vendors, which represents almost four-fifths of expenditure activity
• The University distributed one out of every 16 salary and wage dollars (6.4 %) paid by St. Joseph County employers

Notre Dame employees, along with St. Joseph County 's more than 265,000 residents, enjoy some of the most reasonable costs of living in the country. Prices for groceries, housing, transportation, and health care consistently fall some 25% below those in nearby Chicago. More than 70 daycare facilities, six area public school systems and dozens more private and parochial schools support the community's reputation as an outstanding place in which to raise a family.