PrincetonUniversity
 

A Princeton Profile 2001-02

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Town/Gown Relations 

 
Regional  Expenditures  Employment  Visitors  Contributions  Outreach  Facilities

Regional Economic Impact

With an overall workforce of approximately 11,754 (5,609 employees are benefits eligible), Princeton University is the largest private employer in Mercer County and one of the largest in central New Jersey.

The institution's overall regional economic impact amounted to more than $1.5 billion for 2000-01. This is based on the University's total expenditures of approximately $672 million, along with the expenditures of an estimated 500,000 people attending events on campus and the expenditures of the thousands of students and employees. Included in these statistics is the $23-million economic impact of the nationally acclaimed McCarter Theatre, whose facility is owned by the University; McCarter programming draws approximately 207,000 visitors per year.

The University tries to purchase goods and services in New Jersey as much as possible. Approximately 95 percent of the $105 million spent on construction in 2000-2001 went to New Jersey firms, and 62 percent of the $120 million spent on purchases went to New Jersey firms.

Serving as a major employment center, Princeton is the source of nearly $9.1 million in New Jersey state income tax revenue from those on the University payroll. In addition, the University's intense economic activity creates employment opportunities off campus at businesses and industries whose economic health is linked to the University.

Princeton University plays an important role in attracting prestigious international corporations to central New Jersey, particularly to the University-developed Forrestal Center properties in Plainsboro and South Brunswick. These lands feature premier office, retail, and residential space, as well as academic space with an approximate assessed valuation of $940 million in Plainsboro and South Brunswick. The total Forrestal acreage in the two towns amounts to 2,034 acres, 630 of which the University has developed but no longer owns. Nearly 463 acres of the original Forrestal land holdings in Plainsboro on the east side of Route One have been preserved by the University as permanent open space. In addition, the University currently is working to preserve a significant amount of its land holdings as permanent open space on the west side of Route One in South Brunswick and Plainsboro and to keep development 1,000 feet from the Delaware and Raritan Canal. The Forrestal Center project has been lauded throughout the state as an example of responsible land use planning and quality development; it has won particular praise for being New jersey's first master-planned multiuse development (PMUD), preceding the New Jersey Municipal Land Use Law that prescribed such a planning procedure.

Since its inception 12 years ago, the University's Center for Photonic and Optoelectronic Materials (POEM) has formed research and development partnerships with approximately 200 New Jersey-based companies and entrepreneurs in a wide array of fields, ranging from aviation and environmental monitoring to medicine and telecommunications. POEM estimates these New Jersey companies are now worth more than $1.5 billion. Just in the past year, POEM has launched 15 companies, with a value of $500 million. POEM's focus is on companies with fewer than 50 employees. For example, Sensors Unlimited was acquired this past year for $900 million, and Epitaxx was acquired for $450 million, both companies succeeding in large part because of POEM's assistance and technology. In addition, POEM hosted the state's first Emerging Technology Venture Workshop, representing more than $10 billion in venture capital investment funds.

According to Moody's Investor Service Municipal Credit Research report, the University's positive effect on the local economy and the stability of its presence is the dominant factor in the Triple A bond rating for Princeton Township and the Princeton Regional School District and the Double A bond rating for Princeton Borough.

Expenditures, 2000-01

- Total expenditures: $672 million

- Capital expenditures: $120 million

- Total payroll (including student payroll): $378 million

- Construction spending: $105 million on seven major projects and 250 minor ones; over the past five years, construction spending has amounted to more than $300 million.

Employment, 2000-01

- Total number of employees on the payroll: 11,754

- Benefits eligible: 5,609

- Temporary (employed for a defined/specific period of time or project): 1,465

- Students and casual: 4,680

- NJ State income taxes paid by University employees: $9.1 million

Visitors, 2000-01

- Estimated total: 500,000 (this number accounts for duplication, i.e., many visitors attend more than one of the listed activities that follow)

- McCarter Theatre: 207,000

- Athletic events: 242,000

- Concerts and performances (non-McCarter): 100,000

- Art Museum: 67,200

- Orange Key tours: 25,000

- Alumni-related events: 17,000

- Summer events (non-alumni-related conferences, camps, academic programs): 30,000

- Firestone Library: 12,300

Cotsen Children's Collection: 3,200

Special passes: 6,600

- Commencement: 8,000 to 10,000

- Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL): 2,000

Community Contributions 2000-01

Property tax payments: The University owns approximately 4,000 acres for commercial and academic uses in seven central New Jersey municipalities, with significant holdings in Princeton Borough, Princeton Township, West Windsor Township, Plainsboro Township, and South Brunswick Township. Most of the academic properties are located in Princeton Borough and Princeton Township, which host the University's main campus (500 acres).

- The 2000-01 property and sewer taxes in the above-mentioned communities amounted to approximately $6.81 million.

- The University is the largest taxpayer in both Princeton Borough and Princeton Township, paying $6.5 million in these two communities.

- In Princeton Township, the University pays $2.8 million in property and sewer taxes ($2.3 million in property taxes; $498,000 in sewer taxes).

- In Princeton Borough, the University pays $3.7 million in property and sewer taxes ($2.6 million in property taxes; $1.1 million in sewer taxes).

Voluntary property tax payments on University housing. The total tax payment in both the borough and the township include hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes on housing for faculty, staff, and graduate students. This is housing that might qualify for tax-exemption under New Jersey state law. Taxes are paid on these residential properties, voluntarily, in order to ensure that the public school system is compensated for any school-age children who may dwell in University-owned housing.

Property tax payments on certain athletic facilities. The University pays an estimated $500,000 in property taxes on certain athletic facilities, including the Princeton University Stadium.

Removing buildings from the tax rolls. The University's policy is to remove a building from the tax rolls only when 100 percent of the building is used for academic purposes. This is a voluntary gesture, because state law exempts colleges and universities from paying taxes on any portion of a building used for academic purposes. When a University property is removed from the tax rolls, the University, instead of abruptly stopping all tax payments, phases out or pays down the tax payments over a 10-year period. This procedure is also voluntary.

Payments for infrastructure improvements. The University annually spends approximately $260,000 to maintain 8.5 miles of University-owned but publicly used roadways. In addition, the University pays an $8,000 electric bill for lighting Prospect Avenue. During the past decade, the University has spent more than $2 million on crosswalk and road improvement projects on both its own roads and public roads as well, including Washington Road and Prospect Avenue.

Fee payments. In addition to taxes, the University paid $1.5 million to both state and local governments for permits, inspections, etc. in 2000-01.

Payments for maintenance of/improvements to publicly used facilities. The University annually spends hundreds of thousands of dollars for the maintenance of University-owned, but publicly used, facilities, such as McCarter Theatre, an internationally renowned, Tony-award winning regional arts facility. In recent years, the University has spent an estimated $700,000 annually to maintain McCarter Theatre. In addition, the University has made a $1.9 million donation for McCarter Theatre's new addition. The University financed the Princeton Garden Theatre's $2-million-plus face-lift this year. The Princeton Garden Theatre, whose building is owned by the University but whose operation is under the auspices of an outside movie management company, is the town's only movie theater, and its renovation was a major contribution toward the vitality of the downtown area and the quality of the life of its residents. Upkeep of and renovations to the University train station, home to the "Dinky" shuttle train, have cost the University nearly $2 million since 1985, including the construction of an adjacent parking lot. The Historical Society of Princeton pays no rent to use a University-owned building on Nassau Street in the heart of the Borough; this is worth about $60,000 annually.

Voluntary contribution to municipality. The University makes an annual voluntary cash contribution to Princeton Borough. For 2000-01, this contribution was more than $150,000, which consisted of $102,700 as a general donation, plus $53,700 made on behalf of the University-owned McCarter Theatre property. Both of these contributions escalate each year by the same percentage as the municipal portion of the tax rate. This contribution is in addition to the cash contribution of hundreds of thousands of dollars the University makes to each municipality when the University voluntarily leaves certain properties on the tax rolls.

Affordable housing contributions. The University pays both Princeton Borough and Princeton Township a contractual contribution earmarked for affordable housing. A new agreement for both communities should include the following donations to the two communities' affordable housing funds: $80,000 in 2001; $90,000 in 2002. At the end of the 20th century, the University's contributions to affordable housing through cash and land gifts amounted to an estimated $1.2 million.

Service support and special gifts from 1995 through the year 2001. The University has contributed a significant number of gifts to the municipalities and many other community organizations, including:

- $500,000 to the Princeton Public Library.

- $500,000 to Princeton Regional Schools.

- $390,000 to the Medical Center at Princeton, including capital campaign gifts and annual contributions to their operating budget.

- $353,000 for emergency services, fire, and first aid ($33,000 gift), including the purchase of a new rescue vehicle in 2001 for $155,000.

- $300,000 to Princeton Borough for park redevelopment at Monument Drive.

- $282,000 to Princeton Township for infrastructure and sewer projects.

- $250,000 to assorted area charities in grants and memberships (the University donates approximately $50,000 per year.)

- $120,000 to the United Way. This represents the University's institutional 10-15 percent match of employee contributions. The most recent United Way campaign yielded a University match of $21,000; this year, the United Way campaign at Princeton University raised a total of $174,000. Therefore, the total University institutional and University employee contributions to the United Way from 1995 through 2001 have amounted to an estimated $1.1 million.

- $100,000 to the Arts Council of Princeton for a new building project.

- $100,000 to Princeton Township for open space preservation at Institute Woods.

- $50,000 for the Princeton YWCA capital campaign.

- $30,000 to Princeton Community Housing for the expansion of Elm Court.

- $30,000 for "Curtain Calls," a Millennium New Year's Eve celebration.

- $20,000 to the Princeton Future downtown planning initiative.

- $2 million in in-kind donations to various community nonprofit groups, excluding the McCarter Theatre and the Medical Center at Princeton. For example, the University provides free Internet access and server use to the Princeton public schools, library, senior citizen facilities, and municipal facilities. In addition, the University annually donates space and services to dozens of organizations (such as the Spirit of Princeton July 4th fireworks and the Hospital Fete, both held on University athletic fields). A significant in-kind contribution is to Princeton High School students, who are allowed to enroll in University classes if they have excellent academic records and have completed the curriculum in high school (at current tuition costs for 40 to 45 youngsters, this gift is worth an estimated $125,000 annually).

Service/Outreach

Student Volunteers Council (SVC). Through the SVC, more than 2,000 University undergraduates participate each year in more than 50 student-led community service programs, assisting thousands of residents in the Trenton/Princeton area. Each week, approximately 600 students volunteer on a regular basis in programs serving different populations: youth, senior citizen, mentally handicapped, physically handicapped, and homeless. Several students volunteer as emergency medical technicians, and, in that capacity, provide an essential service to the entire population of Princeton. Approximately 100 incoming first-year students participate in SVC's Community Action preorientation program, doing service projects in Trenton, Princeton, and Philadelphia. SVC also helps facilitate summer community-service intern programs for University students.

Community House. Community House is a student volunteer service organization that is made up of a diverse group of students who are primarily, although not exclusively, interested in rendering service to minority communities. The student volunteers work in the Princeton Borough and Princeton Township area on projects that include mentoring teens and tutoring and support programs for immigrant populations as well as school readiness for preschool children. Community House also organizes one-time projects, such as Campus Volunteer Day, which, with the cosponsorship of the Office of Community and State Affairs, brings students together with faculty and staff to volunteer on one-time projects in the local community. In addition to its outreach activities, Community House serves as a forum for intellectual and social exchange and support for its staff and volunteers.

Graduate students. In addition to undergraduate student volunteer efforts, graduate students from the Woodrow Wilson School and other departments participate in tutoring and mentor programs throughout the Trenton/Princeton area. For example, the graduate students living in graduate housing next to an affordable housing complex in Princeton tutor youngsters living in that housing complex. Graduate students also conduct a year-end furniture recycling drive in conjunction with the Office of Community and State Affairs.

Princeton-Blairstown Center. Known as Blairstown, the Princeton-Blairstown Center provides a camp program each summer for hundreds of inner-city youth from New Jersey, Philadelphia, and New York City. Founded in 1908, the center helps disadvantaged youth build self-confidence while they participate in a challenging outdoor experience.

Office of Community and State Affairs. The members of the University's Office of Community and State Affairs (CSA) wear many different hats, while serving as the town/gown liaisons between the University and the state and local governments as well as the University community (faculty/staff/students) and the residents of the University's neighboring communities. The CSA team works to serve as the public's first point of contact--answering questions and providing links to University resources and helping the University to be a responsive and responsible neighbor and citizen of the region. In addition to sponsoring numerous town/gown events and working with state and local governments, CSA coordinates faculty and staff community service initiatives. Working in collaboration with area organizations serving needy populations, as well as with other University departments and organizations, CSA each year arranges food and clothing drives, a community service fair, volunteer work days, a school supplies drive, holiday gift baskets, surplus equipment donations, and a year-end furniture recycling project.

Office of Teacher Preparation. Besides training University students to be K-12 teachers, the program supports and provides recognition for local school teachers. It sponsors distinguished teaching awards for New Jersey teachers. Project QUEST is a two-week summer institute in science for elementary school instructors, with follow-up sessions held during the academic year. Teachers as Scholars is a partnership between the University and the surrounding school districts that provides three-to-four-day scholarly seminars for teachers. In addition, the Office of Teacher Preparation manages the high school student academic/enrichment program that allows students who have completed their course work and have received permission from their respective high schools to take courses free-of-charge in foreign languages, computer science, mathematics, and music. The Office of Teacher Preparation staff also presents professional development workshops for principals and administrators in New Jersey and to teachers in Princeton Regional Schools as part of their professional development requirements.

Princeton University Preparation Program. Funded by Princeton University and founded and administered by Princeton University faculty and staff, Princeton Prep is a three-year learning and enrichment program for Mercer County high school students who are educationally motivated and rich in intellectual curiosity, but who are financially disadvantaged. Students are admitted to the program at the end of their first year of high school and attend for three summers. This year, Princeton Prep enrolled 23 students; when it is up to full capacity, Princeton Prep will enroll approximately 75 youngsters, who will pay no tuition and will receive a stipend.

Harold W. McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning. The McGraw Center serves as home to the Learn-by-Teaching initiative, a program that trains Princeton students to develop and teach lessons in local K-12 classrooms (particularly in the area of science).

Public lectures, continuing education, auditing program. Throughout the academic year, hundreds of lectures and other educational programs on a wide variety of topics are held on campus and are open to the public, usually free-of-charge. Through the Program in Continuing Education, University staff and area residents may formally enroll in courses for a fee based on current tuition costs. Although courses that are completed do not lead to a degree from the University, students do receive grades and Princeton transcripts. A special program for New Jersey elementary and secondary school teachers allows them to enroll formally in University courses at a substantially reduced fee. Members of the community also may register for the University's Community Auditing Program (CAP), allowing them to attend lectures and pay only a small processing fee. The University's Office of Community and State Affairs administers the Continuing Education and Auditing Programs for the non-University community.

Office of Computing and Information Technology (CIT). This office provides free Internet access to Princeton schools, municipal offices, the public library, and the Senior Resource Center.

Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL). As a service to area schools it provides materials and equipment, and PPPL scientists give lectures and demonstrations as well as help with science fairs. In addition, it offers special tours of the lab for school groups. Each winter the laboratory hosts an eight-week "Science on Saturday" series at no charge for local high school students and teachers. It also provides a speakers bureau for local organizations and colleges and universities, in-service and teacher-enhancement programs for educators, summer workshops for middle school teachers, and many research opportunities for high school teachers.

Princeton Materials Institute (PMI). The faculty of PMI, in collaboration with local school districts, the E=mc2 enrichment program and the Invention Factory Science Center in Trenton, work with area teachers to support and enhance innovative, inquiry-based science curricula in local school districts. It hosts a summer outreach program for high school students participating in the New Jersey Environmentors program and offers full-time summer research opportunities for area science teachers.

The Art Museum. The Princeton Art Museum attracted more than 70,000 visitors last year for a variety of programs for adults and children. The museum staff and volunteers reached out to area schools, hospitals, and retirement homes with a variety of community service programs, events, and tours funded by the Art Museum, the Friends of the Art Museum, and the Docent Association.

Department of Athletics. Athletics provides free admission to athletic events to local youth groups and other community-based organizations that normally do not attend University programs. Teams volunteer at a center for abused children in Trenton, and the department is heavily involved in educational outreach, including school assemblies featuring student-athletes and a special summer reading program, "Reading With the Tigers." In exchange for reading ten books, over 1,000 area children receive free admission to select athletic programs. Student-athletes host Girls and Women in Sports Day and a spring sports festival for local youth.

Community Based Learning Initiative (CBLI). The CBLI is a group of students, faculty, administrators, and community experts working to provide students with opportunities for community involvement and hands-on research in the classroom. Community-based learning enriches coursework by encouraging students to apply the knowledge and analytic tools gained in the classroom to the pressing issues that affect local communities.

Center for Community Service. This new center works with existing campus service organizations to provide opportunities for service learning, identify needs and provide resources, and create a centralized repository of information concerning Princeton/community service collaborations.

Host of town events. Each year the University reaches out to residents throughout the region by hosting special educational, cultural, and athletic events such as Communiversity, the International Festival, the June Fete, Curtain Calls, the Martin Luther King Day Celebration, Community Day at the Princeton Stadium, athletic programs and tournaments, the Princeton Chamber Symphony's Youth Concert, the Princeton High School Holiday Concert, and the eighth-grade promotion ceremony.

Tours and information. Student representatives of the Orange Key Guide Service offer tours of the historic main campus seven days a week throughout the year (foreign-language tours are also available). Tours of the Engineering Quadrangle, or E-Quad, are conducted by the School of Engineering and Applied Science weekdays during the academic year and by appointment in the summer. The Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) also offers tours by special arrangement. The Daily Princetonian, a student newspaper published weekdays when the University is in session, is a good source of events information. The Princeton Weekly Bulletin, published by the Office of Communications for the University community, features a weekly events calendar. Also, the calendar, employment opportunities, virtual campus tour, and a wide range of up-to-date information about the University is available on the Web at www.princeton.edu.

Facilities

The University's Office of Community and State Affairs facilitates use of University facilities by community charitable and governmental organizations.

- 185 Nassau Street houses the Programs in Creative Writing, Theater and Dance, and Visual Arts, which host art shows, theatrical productions, and poetry and fiction readings.

- The Art Museum offers a variety of programs for adults and children, both at the museum and in area schools, hospitals, and retirement homes. The Docent Association gives guided tours for groups of six or more adults. It also gives tours for children by appointment. There is no tour charge for school groups. The museum is free and open to the public from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., except Mondays and holidays.

- Princeton athletic events are open to the public, some at no charge. Season tickets provide access to football, ice hockey, and basketball at a reduced per-game charge. Athletic facilities are often available to residents of the community. A single fee provides access to Dillon Gymnasium basketball and squash courts; the Dillon Gymnasium fitness center; both DeNunzio and Dillon pools; the Jadwin Gymnasium track; and Baker Rink. Use of indoor and outdoor tennis courts requires a fee.

- Carnegie Lake, which is owned by Princeton University and serves as its intercollegiate rowing facility, is a popular community recreational area, providing a site for rowing, fishing, canoeing, and ice skating.

- The Princeton University Chapel, which seats nearly 2,000 people, offers services, musical performances, and other special events that are open to the public.

- Firestone Library offers access privileges to the public for modest fees. Special accommodation regarding the fees is made in cases of financial need. The public is welcome, without charge, to the Cotsen Children's Library, at the main entrance to Firestone. Open seven days a week, the Cotsen features a permanent interactive exhibit on children's literature and provides outreach activities, storytelling, tours, and conferences throughout the year. Also open to the public are the exhibition gallery on the first-floor and the second-floor gallery. The Rare Book Room and the Theater Arts Collection may be seen by signing in at the door.

- FitzRandolph Observatory sponsors open houses with evening viewing through the 36-inch reflecting telescope. The Princeton Weekly Bulletin lists the dates, which vary from year to year depending on astronomical conditions.

- The Frist Campus Center is a world-class facility, where Princeton University undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty, staff, and alumni come together and build campus community. The Frist Campus Center offers opportunities for social and academic interactions, events, and programs in addition to providing numerous services and facilities for members of the general public, such as the Welcome Desk, Orange Key campus tours, meeting and conference space, the Food Gallery, Cafe´ Vivian, the Beverage Laboratory, and a branch of the Princeton U-Store.

- McCarter Theatre offers drama, music, dance, film, and other events ranging from acrobatics to mime. The theater also hosts the annual show presented by student members of the Triangle Club.

- Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall hosts musical, dramatic, and other performances, most of them open to the public and most for a fee.

- Taplin Auditorium in Fine Hall hosts campus musical groups throughout the year, which are sponsored by the Friends of Princeton Music.

- A student-run facility, Theatre Intime, schedules dramatic productions throughout the year at Murray-Dodge Hall.

- The Music Department sponsors free student concerts, Music-at-Noon, during the academic year in the Woolworth Center.

- The University's Center for Visitor and Conference Services coordinates visits to campus by outside organizations for meetings, workshops, and educational institutes as well as sports camps and other athletic activities, each year hosting over 10,000 visitors to campus.

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