Impact on universities, City of Richmond from participation in NCAA basketball tournament

See "March Madness boosts VCU, UR and Richmond" from the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Of course the article focuses on how the University of Richmond and Virginia Commonwealth University both were selected for the 2011 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament--VCU remains in contention.

The article mentions increased attention on both universities as well as the city, but also how the participation in tournament is bringing the two universities together more, and they already do some collaboration.

From the article:

"I think things will not be the same after this," said Eugene P. Trani, who served as VCU president from 1990 to 2009 and reshaped the university as an economic engine for the city, as well as a major research institution.

Trani, speaking from San Antonio, predicted that the public exposure from the NCAA run will prompt a closer look at all the university has to offer, including by Richmond's neighbors.

The pride on public display for the past week is about more than athletic bragging rights — it has brought together the two universities as the public champions of a city that is getting unprecedented national attention for all the right reasons.

"It's nothing but good for the city of Richmond," said Mayor Dwight C. Jones, who returned from San Antonio on Saturday and promptly issued a proclamation of gratitude and support for both universities.

UR President Edward Ayers, who also returned from San Antonio on Saturday, said the experience has deepened the collaborative ties between the two universities.

"They were supposed to be rivals, between UR and VCU, and they turned out to be allies," Ayers said. ...

"I think things will not be the same after this," said Eugene P. Trani, who served as VCU president from 1990 to 2009 and reshaped the university as an economic engine for the city, as well as a major research institution.

Trani, speaking from San Antonio, predicted that the public exposure from the NCAA run will prompt a closer look at all the university has to offer, including by Richmond's neighbors.

"This is an opportunity for people from the Richmond metropolitan area to discover the university and the importance of this institution," he said.

The ties on display last week between VCU and UR aren't entirely new. After all, both universities are sponsoring the French Film Festival, a three-day smorgasbord of films and lectures this weekend. But this was a public embrace.

"The last week was very important to the University of Richmond," said Ayers, who appeared at a community pep rally downtown with Rao and Jones. "We so much want to be woven into the fabric of Richmond, and we are."

Both universities are reaping immediate rewards with rising interest in admissions by prospective students, as well as financial dividends. Rao said he gained significant monetary pledges from three donors over dinner in San Antonio.

I know that Philadelphia and Baltimore (Baltimore Collegetown Network) have focused efforts on universities and college students (and post-graduation retention) as an economic development and quality of life initiative.

This is an "easy" thing for cities to work to encourage.

Resources:

- PUTTING THEIR TOWNS ON THE MAP: Baltimore and Philadelphia institutional and city planners are working together to create great college towns from Business Officer, the publication of the National Association of College and University Business Officers

- The Brains in Baltimore: How Higher Education is Driving the Region's Economic Future, 2008 Economic and Community Impact Study, Baltimore Collegetown Network

- Baltimore Collegetown wants to connect students with employers," Baltimore Business Journal