SUNY board approves merger of SUNYIT and Albany’s CNSE

The State University of New York (SUNY) board of trustees on Wednesday unanimously approved Chancellor Nancy Zimpher’s recommendation to merge the system’s two technology schools.

The board approved the merger of the SUNY Institute of Technology in Marcy and the SUNY College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) in Albany, SUNY said in a news release.

The trustees approved a resolution that transfers the administrative authority of CNSE from SUNY Albany to SUNYIT, according to the SUNY website.

The decision to merge the institutions follows a board resolution in July 2013 directing Zimpher to develop a new degree-granting structure that would include CNSE, SUNY said.

The institution, which the system will rename the SUNY Institute of Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (SUNY INSET), will have locations in Albany and Marcy, with additional existing and future university-industry partnerships across New York, SUNY said.

The partnerships will focus on enabling innovation, providing education and workforce training, and maximizing technology transfer and economic development.

Alain Kaloyeros, who’s been serving as senior vice president and CEO of CNSE, will provide executive leadership of the new institution, SUNY said.

By formally aligning the two institutions, SUNY will “position affordable public higher education in New York at the pinnacle of scholarly excellence in high-tech academic instruction and research,” SUNY said.

SUNY is bringing together two institutions with similar missions and existing partnerships to create a high-tech academic and economic development “juggernaut” that does not exist anywhere else in public higher education, Zimpher said in the news release.

“We will make this process seamless for our students, faculty, and employees while producing what will be an internationally recognized polytechnic institution, and we’ll do it for less money. This is a historic day for SUNY.”

The announcement builds on SUNYIT’s “strong existing ties” with CNSE, including their partnership in Gov. Cuomo’s $1.5 billion Nano Utica initiative. The merger with CNSE will help SUNYIT “stabilize and expand” financially, and continue to grow enrollment and programs, the system contends.

The new institution will provide Mohawk Valley students access to “world-class” facilities and create a “career-ready” workforce that will help attract and retain high-tech companies to the region and the state, SUNY said.

In addition to maintaining all current SUNYIT programs and faculty, the merger will enable SUNYIT to “significantly” build and expand on its current disciplines and initiatives, the system added.

CNSE has attracted over $22 billion in private-sector investment that has created more than 13,000 jobs in the Capital Region and across upstate New York, including innovation and commercialization hubs in Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, and Utica.

It has also generated billions in private investments and created an additional 3,000 jobs in the Upstate region, SUNY said.

The merger will result in cost savings for the SUNY system through “streamlined,” campus-level, administrative functions, shared services, and management “efficiencies,” SUNY said.

It won’t result in additional costs for students or taxpayers, SUNY contends. The merger is not considered “an expansion” of the SUNY system, as the number of campuses will remain at 64, the system said.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com