Governor Kathy Hochul today announced how 14 State University of New York campuses are investing nearly $10 million in annual state funding to expand their research capacity. The funding was secured through the 2023-24 state budget’s historic $163 million increase in direct operating aid to SUNY’s state-operated campuses.
“I am committed to building the best public higher education system in the country right here in New York State," Governor Hochul said. "Through this $10 million investment, SUNY campuses are expanding research opportunities for students and ensuring they have the tools they need to succeed.”
SUNY Chancellor John B. King, Jr. is visiting Buffalo State University today where the university plans to utilize its $40,000 in research funding – part of this year’s nearly $10 million state funding increase – to hire a pre-award specialist, a role that is crucial as the campus seeks to acquire more competitive research grants. During the 2022-23 academic year alone, the campus was granted about $1.8 million from federal agencies, including from the National Science Foundation, the US Department of Education, and the US Department of Health and Human Services.
While on campus, Chancellor King is visiting the state-of-the-art Whitworth Ferguson Planetarium, which opened in 2021 after investing more than $100 million and 10 years of construction in the Science and Math Complex. He will join Interim President Bonita R. Durand for Buffalo State’s Eclipse Fest, which concludes a year-long educational program for the community, including a demonstration of the hands-on technology available to conduct astronomy research for today’s celestial event.
As a result of these resources allocated to 14 research-intensive campuses:
- At least 11 campuses will use funds to support researchers through competitive start-up packages, administrative support and faculty release time. For example:
-Stony Brook University will use their allocation to support research infrastructure in new roles such as data privacy, research security, and proposal development specialists.
-SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University is using their allocation to support their research office, including an administrative director for TRANSPORT. TRANSPORT is a growing program that is cultivating health equity researchers from underrepresented backgrounds to perform research that informs the development of sustainable solutions to health disparities.
-SUNY College of Optometry will use their funds for competitive start-up packages for new researchers in the field of genetics and molecular biology of retinal and eye disease.
- At least seven campuses will purchase new and specialized technology and equipment and develop labs to conduct cutting-edge research. For example:
-SUNY Upstate Medical will purchase specialized equipment to fight disease and understand brain structure at the molecular level. Both tools were requested by faculty spanning health and particle research.
-SUNY Geneseo will provide start-up funding to support new faculty labs and other research programs, especially in the STEM fields.
- At least four campuses will invest in stipends to support student research. For example:
-SUNY Plattsburgh is offering stipends to cover supplies, equipment, and fellowship funds for approved student research proposals.
- At least seven campuses will engage in other innovative research supports around specific societal problems and expand a culture of research on their campus. For example:
-SUNY Oswego is using their allocation to support the Great Lakes Institute to conduct research around water quality monitoring, watershed maintenance, meteorological, climate, and socio-economic issues, fisheries and hatcheries, freshwater use and scarcity, indigenous people issues, computational and ecosystem modeling, Great Lake resilience, and water level issues.
-SUNY Polytechnic Institute will use their funds to create research centers in areas such as civil engineering, robotics and advanced communications, and advanced manufacturing.
A fact sheet outlining campus investments is available here.
SUNY Chancellor John B. King, Jr. said, “In her inaugural State of the State address, Governor Hochul charged SUNY to double research and innovation across the system. This annual investment is helping SUNY to meet the Governor’s goal and support groundbreaking research in areas such as artificial intelligence, semiconductors and advanced manufacturing, renewable energy, and other fields that will secure SUNY's position as a top research institution.”
Buffalo State University Interim President Bonita Durand said, “New York State's commitment to investing in SUNY campuses' research capacity is a difference-maker. At Buffalo State University, this support will enable us to leverage prior investments to our Science and Mathematics Complex, including the Whitworth Ferguson Planetarium, as well as our Technology Building, to create new research opportunities for students and faculty.”
State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky said, “Last year the legislature and Governor provided a record increase in operating aid for SUNY. The 14 SUNY campuses' faculty and students will benefit from the $10 million allocation. I hope the budget now being negotiated includes a similar investment to continue research funding.”
Assemblymember Patricia Fahy said, “New York continues to be the epicenter of world-class research and innovation thanks to the globally recognized researchers at SUNY and in our higher education system. Our record operating aid increase means that more SUNY institutions and researchers will have access to research grants that will further their work and our ability to attract world-class talent. Thank you to SUNY Chancellor King and Governor Hochul for continuing to ensure that New York invests in critical research and development that will grow our workforce and help us meet the challenges of tomorrow.”
About The State University of New York
The State University of New York, which celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2023, is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY’s 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country’s oldest school of maritime, the state’s only college of optometry, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.4 million students amongst its entire portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.1 billion in fiscal year 2022, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and one in three New Yorkers with a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit www.suny.edu.