Dear Editor,The vision of Barton Community College is to “be a leading educational institution, recognized for being innovative and having outstanding people, programs and services.”It is the belief of the Barton Board of Trustees that a genuine pursuit of this vision will not only lead to the college’s ultimate success, it will build the college into a tremendous economic and social asset to its communities.We frequently reassess and keep a close eye on our progress. However, social and economic impact can be difficult to measure with accuracy, which led the board to pursue an evaluation by Economic Modeling Specialists Inc., a company that specializes in providing such data for colleges.The EMSI study details the role that Barton plays in promoting economic development, enhancing students’ careers and improving quality of life for our area. Data sources include the 2012-13 academic and financial reports from the college, industry and employment data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, earning and demographic data from the U.S. Census Bureau and a variety of studies and surveys relating education to social behavior.The Board of Trustees will be sharing more information about the study with an upcoming news release and details on the Barton website.