Opinion: Higher ed partnerships fuel Springfield’s economic engine

Rusty Worley

What will determine whether Springfield grows over the next 20 years?

More housing? Better transportation? New employers?

Those factors matter, but Springfield’s greatest competitive advantage may already be here: a higher education ecosystem that connects universities, employers, health systems and public institutions in ways many similarly sized communities struggle to replicate.

In a community with more than 45,000 college students, the back-to-school surge is hard to miss. It shows up in morning commutes, coffee shops, restaurants, apartments and retail corridors. That renewed energy is more than seasonal activity; it is a reminder that education is one of Springfield’s most important economic engines.

Nationally, higher education is facing a maelstrom of headwinds: declining birth rates, stagnant state funding, major shifts in federal support for research and student loans, rising labor costs, service-delivery disruption from artificial intelligence and much more.

Springfield is responding with one of its greatest strengths: collaboration. Across the region, educators, employers and civic partners are aligning around workforce development in ways that can help students move into good jobs and help employers grow. A few recent examples stand out:

The Alliance for Healthcare Education brings together CoxHealth, Missouri State University, Ozarks Technical Community College and Springfield Public Schools to guide students through health care pathways and into the workforce.

Mercy worked with the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce to launch a Graduate Medical Education initiative designed to grow residency and fellowship opportunities, with a goal of at least 160 positions by 2032.

Built on a decade of collaboration with CoxHealth and Mercy, the University of Missouri School of Medicine Springfield campus is expanding from a two-year clinical campus to a full four-year program. By 2030, the Springfield campus is expected to enroll 128 students and contribute to a total of 672 medical students across Mizzou’s Columbia and Springfield sites.

The Cooperative Engineering Program with linking Missouri State University and with Missouri University of Science and Technology Missouri S&T has expanded opportunities for students in electrical, civil and mechanical engineering. Its graduates have helped fuel the growth of area engineering firms over the past decade, including Toth & Associates, which has 200 people at its Springfield headquarters. The depth and expertise of the market would not be where it is today without this local pipeline of engineering talent.

Missouri State University’s Efactory and Drury University’s Breech School of Business help cultivate a culture of entrepreneurship represented by homegrown brands such as Bass Pro Shops, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Forvis Mazars, SRC Holdings and more. The next generation of business leaders is nurtured today by mentors, faculty and founders connected to MSU and Drury.

These innovative partnerships are not simply education initiatives. They are economic development strategies. By creating clearer pathways to good-paying jobs, they can strengthen economic mobility, attract new talent and give more graduates a reason to build their careers here.

As a community, we should celebrate these collaborations, track their results and keep investing in living laboratories such as the Medical Mile, IDEA Commons and the Boonville Avenue Corridor. Springfield is well positioned to demonstrate what business, education and civic leaders can accomplish when we work together.

Rusty Worley is director of community engagement for Toth & Associates Inc. He can be reached at rworley@tothassociates.com.