Charlottesville was recently named to The Daily Beast's list of "America's Brainiest Cities," making it as high as No. 9 in the rankings.
Richard Florida, director of the Martin Prosperity Institute at the University of Toronto and author of the article, weighed three variables to determine which cities made the list. These factors included the percentage of adults older than 25 who hold a doctorate, master's or professional degree, the number of computer scientists and mathematicians, as well as scientists as a fraction of those employed in the city.
Florida stated in the article that the presence of major research universities tended to be one of the most decisive variables in the decision.
The city of Boulder, Colo., home of the University of Colorado, was named "America's Brainiest City." Durham-Chapel Hill in North Carolina, where both Duke University and the University of Carolina are located, came in second.
Charlottesville officials were not surprised by the city's high ranking.
Mayor Dave Norris said the presence of the University likely impacted the decision greatly.
"The University brings so much capital to our community, both intellectual capital and technological capital, and our community benefits greatly from that," he said.
The University plays a large role not only by encouraging lifelong education, but also with the quality of the faculty members and students that it brings to the town, said Ric Barrick, director of communications for the City of Charlottesville.
"Without the University, we would not have been nearly as successful," he said.
Research by Florida's Martin Prosperity Institute, a think tank that studies the role of location, place and city-regions in global economic prosperity, suggests that "brainy" cities tend to have higher incomes, wages and economic output. In The Daily Beast article, Florida stressed the importance of knowledge assets that are rooted in the local economy.
Barrick said one of the factors that contributes to the city's continued success is the fact that the University sees Charlottesville as a community and not as a location.
"Students feel like they're part of a community, and there are many opportunities that folks who aren't involved with the University can take advantage of," Barrick said.
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