Two former Stony Brook University faculty members have announced a $10 million gift to the university that goes towards both the establishment of a new interdisciplinary research center and the $300 million capital campaign, “The Emergence of Stony Brook,” university officials said.
The donation, made by Dr. Henry Laufer, a former math professor, and his wife Dr. Marsha Laufer, a former faculty member of the School of Health Technology and Management, will also be used to provide scholarships for students and expand programming at the Staller Center for the Arts.
“I can’t think of a better holiday gift this year, especially in light of the severe cuts in state funding,” said President Shirley Strum Kenny. “Their generosity is both an affirmation of the critically important mission of public higher education and of Stony Brook’s position as a world leader in research, particularly in math and the sciences.”
A large portion of the donation — $8 million — will be used to establish an interdisciplinary research center that will bring together experts in math, genetics, biochemistry, engineering, and computer sciences to shed new light on biomedical research and health care.
“The university has played a pivotal role in our lives,” Henry Laufer said. “And because of its international — and well-deserved — reputation as an institution both on the cutting-edge of research in math and the sciences and one that fosters collaboration among traditional academic disciplines, it is the ideal place for this new center,” Laufer said.
The Laufer Center will also play a part in the newly created Stony Brook Collaborative Research Alliance, a partnership between Stony Brook University, Brookhaven National Laboratory, and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.
“The center will help pave the way to explore new frontiers in research and education which will have a profound impact on the future of biomedical research and health care for generations to come,” Kenny said. The remaining $2 million will provide scholarship support for students in the School of Health Technology and Management as well as help to expand programming at the Staller Center for the Arts.
“The Emergence of Stony Brook” is the university’s first comprehensive campaign, with goals for the future of Stony Brook University ranging from a five-year plan to advancements for the next 50 years. These plans include building research with a special focus on interdisciplinary issues and strengthening the school’s reputation as Long Island’s research university.
