Stony Brook University has raised $630.7 million through its “Campaign for Stony Brook” fundraiser over the past seven years, according to a release from late August.
The campaign’s focus was to raise funds for financial aid, endowed chairs and professorships, research, interdisciplinary academic programs and facilities.
“The Campaign for Stony Brook dramatically underscores the importance and impact of philanthropy across our campus and I am extremely grateful to my fellow campaign leaders, and to those who contributed the extra resources we need to continue to educate and prepare the leaders of tomorrow,” President Samuel L. Stanley Jr. said in the release, although he could not be reached for comment.
The Campaign for Stony Brook started in 2011 with a $150 million donation from the Simons Foundation and former Math Department Chair Jim Simons and Marilyn Simons. Eighty of Jim Simons’ colleagues at Renaissance Technologies, a company he founded, also donated more than $127.4 million. The campaign leadership and the Stony Brook Foundation Board of Trustees collectively donated $310.9 million. And with donations from alumni, foundations, corporations and others since then, the campaign has exceeded its goal of $600 million by 5 percent, according to the release.
“The seven-year comprehensive fundraising campaign for Stony Brook exceeded its goal because thousands of friends and alumni — 47,961, in fact — recognized the Campaign for what it was and will continue to be: an irrefutable endorsement of Stony Brook as an unparalleled engine of social mobility, breakthrough research, innovative teaching, and exceptional medical care all making a positive impact in society,” Senior Vice President for University Advancement Dexter Bailey wrote in an email statement.
The news release stated that over 80 percent of the donations have been received. Some of the campaign accomplishments included 44 newly endowed chairs and professorships, $52.6 million for financial aid, $125.9 million for facilities and campus life and $209.1 million for research and other investments.
“For the School of Medicine, the incredible generosity of our friends has catalyzed several innovative and impactful research and clinical programs, advancing what we know about cancer, cognitive decline, and several important diseases,” Dean of the School of Medicine and Senior Vice President for Health Sciences Kenneth Kaushansky said in the release.
The campaign has been billed as the most successful fundraising effort in SUNY history. According to the release, the previous Stony Brook fundraising campaign, which concluded in 2009, raised $361.7 million.
“Building a strong fundraising program is essential for Stony Brook to compete effectively with our aspirational peers for top students, faculty and research programs,” Bailey stated in the release.
