IMPROVING CAMPUS INFRASTRUCTURE
Some of the major improvements to infrastructure completed over the summer are very visible; others are not. Read in this issue about the many major projects completed by Physical Facilities and Information Technology Services, as well as the new programs offered by the University Center for Training and Development.
SCHOOL OF PHARMACY AND PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES OPENS NEW BUILDING
The opening of the new, $60-million School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University's Health Sciences Campus in Johnson City, N.Y., headlines this quarterly report, but there's also good news about collaborations, external funding and student successes. Read more in this issue.
SUCCESSFUL INITIATIVES SUPPORT STUDENTS
It takes donors at many levels to make Binghamton University successful, and in this issue of the quarterly report, you can read about a number of them. Whether it's AVANGRID offering full-tuition scholarships and capstone project support, or playing golf to benefit the Alumni Legacy Scholarship, the Division of Advancement works with Binghamton supporters.
BINGHAMTON RESEARCH FUNDING SETS RECORD
Binghamton University reported research expenditures totaling $47.5 million in 2017-18, an increase of about 19 percent from the previous fiscal year. The figure tops 2011-12, the campus’ all-time best year for research funding, when just over $40 million was reported. The new record, which follows several years of steady growth, is an important sign of the campus’ creativity and innovation. Healthcare research accounted for nearly a third of expenditures, with electronics packaging and systems engineering following at about 22 percent.
BAXTER THE BEARCAT BOOSTS SCHOOL SPIRIT
The Division of Student Affairs spent the summer hosting students and families for orientation and preparing for the opening of the fall semester. With some new people on board and some others with new duties, it has been a busy time. Not too busy, though, to show Binghamton University pride, as you'll read about the new Baxter the Bearcat Bench in the University Union in this issue.
STUDENT-ATHLETES CONTINUE TO SUCCEED ACADEMICALLY
Student-athletes continue to shine on and off the courts and fields. The Athletics Department sets high academic standards, and student-athletes surpass them across the board. Read about the accomplishments made by student-athletes in their sports and in the classroom – and check out the videos showcasing fall sports and the new women's head basketball coach, Bethann Shapiro Ord, in this issue.
HELPING TO MAKE THE CAMPUS MORE INCLUSIVE
The Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion works to educate and empower everyone on campus in ways that create a welcoming community. From the Udiversity Educational Institute, that holds trainings for students, faculty and staff, to the Multicultural Resource Center and Q Center, the division's offices that work to build bridges and support students though education and events such as Sundaze, part of its Welcome Week programming. Read about the division's recent initiatives in this report.
DONOR SUPPORT ADVANCES BINGHAMTON UNIVERSITY
The Binghamton University Foundation had a successful 2017-18 year, bringing in the second highest amount of cash ever in support of the University. Read the numbers in this issue of the quarterly report, and learn one way the Foundation celebrates its donors.
Underrepresented students gain research skills in supportive environment
If the Bridges to the Baccalaureate Program is meant to help underrepresented students transition from community colleges to four-year baccalaureate programs in the biomedical and behavioral research arenas, Binghamton University can most assuredly claim success.
With 18 students from three partner schools – Westchester, Monroe and Onondaga community colleges – attending Binghamton this summer for five weeks of research, the number of Bridges participants over the last 15 years now totals 278. But the success is more clearly told through graduation rates.
“We have phenomenal graduation rates,” said Bridges co-director Lisa Savage, professor of psychology. Of participants in Binghamton’s program, 88 percent transfer to a four-year college. With the national graduation rate hovering around 50 percent, and Binghamton’s graduation rate for its general student population at about 72 percent, Bridges students who attend Binghamton’s program and then go to any U.S. college for their bachelor’s degree graduate at a rate of 85 percent. Of those students, the ones who transfer into Binghamton do even better – 95 percent of them graduate with a bachelor’s degree, the vast majority in a science-related field. “And these are all underrepresented kids,” Savage said.
In fact, the program is so successful that its funding was recently renewed to the tune of over a million dollars over five years. One of our renewal goals is to try to get more participants to transfer to Binghamton. ”We’re also planning a celebration in the fall,” said Di Lorenzo. “We’ve had consistent funding of millions of dollars. We’ve got med school grads and PhDs to our credit. When they come to Binghamton it’s the first time they’ve ever been away from home. We do an amazing job.”