Economic & Workforce Briefing

Just the Facts, Ma’am: A Statistical Look at Centre County

Crunch…crunch…crunch. Here come the numbers. Put on your green eyeshade and examine data about Centre County.

During 2011, 12 of every 1,000 Pennsylvanians lived in Centre County. Between 2006 and 2011, the population of Centre County grew by 5.2%, which is 16% higher than the rate of population growth rate for the entire U.S. and, remarkably, 136% higher than the growth rate for Pennsylvania.

At the same time, the population of Centre County was less densely packed than the population of the entire state. Pennsylvania contained 240 people per square mile, while 140 people per square mile resided in Centre County. As might be expected in a rural county that contains a large university, 20– to 24–year olds were over three times more concentrated in Centre County than in the entire Commonwealth and in the entire U.S.

The concentration of Asian people was almost two times greater in Centre County than in the state, while the concentration of African Americans was four times lower. Although not highly concentrated in Centre County, people of Hispanic American origin and people describing themselves with multi-racial origins had the highest rates of population growth in Centre County between 2004 and 2011, just as they had in the state and in the U.S.

The number of jobs in Centre County grew by 5.2% between 2004 and 2011, a rate that was 68% higher than the job growth rate in Pennsylvania and 41% higher than for the entire U.S. Centre County frequently has exhibited the lowest county unemployment rates produced in the Commonwealth.

State government, Penn State, full-service restaurants, and construction accounted for the largest number of job gains in Centre County between 2004 and 2011, while telemarketing firms and nonferrous foundries shed the largest number of workers. The number of jobs gained in construction and in oil and gas extraction in Centre County grew at higher rates than general and industry–specific national job growth rates. Among all Centre County industries, manufacturing lost the largest number of jobs between 2004 and 2011, although not at the same high rates as the rest of the nation.

Centre County workers earned, on average, $39,800 during 2011, with an average difference of $15,400 between males and females. Highest paying industries involved utilities ($91,800/worker), management of companies ($75,454), and oil and gas extraction ($75,231). Relatively low pay (<$16,000/worker) was earned in agriculture, educational services, accommodation and food services, and arts, entertainment, and recreation industries. None of these County industries with the lowest pay offered average earnings that provided a living wage for households containing a single adult or more residents according to Poverty in America’s Living Wage Calculator (http://www.livingwage.geog.psu.edu/counties/42027).

During 2010, Centre County’s gross regional product—i.e., the dollar value of goods and services sold to County households and governments, as exports, and for housing, equipment, and other structures—was $5.6 billion, most of which was due to state government and Penn State. Centre County workers earned $4.3 billion in 2010, and an additional $1.1 billion was earned as property income through rents, royalties, and other returns to assets.

Centre County industries supplied 25% of the goods and services used by County industries during 2010, while Centre County industries purchased 75% of their supplies from firms located outside the County. Industries that could meet more of the supply needs of Centre County that have been imported include commercial banking, wired communication carriers, engineering services, electrical contractors, property and casualty insurance carriers, pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing, and services of lawyers.

The dollar value of Centre County exports out of the County and out of the country totaled $12 billion in 2010.

Whew! Take a drink of water. That was sure dry.