SUNY Broome wins state grant for SUNY BEE entrepreneurial program

BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — The State University of New York Broome Community College (SUNY Broome) will use a $6 million state grant for its upcoming Bridge to Excellence program (SUNY BEE).

The SUNY Broome funding award is among grants totaling $55 million that benefit five projects through the third round of the NYSUNY 2020 Challenge Grant program.

The office of Gov. Andrew Cuomo made the announcement in a news release this week.

As part of legislation Cuomo signed in August 2011, the NYSUNY2020 program “will help New York’s public universities become a leading catalyst for regionally-focused economic development while maintaining affordability and improving academic quality for all students,” Cuomo’s office said at the time.

The SUNY Bridge to Entrepreneurial Excellence is a “student-centered approach to creating the next generation of entrepreneurs through experiential education,” as described in the governor’s news release.

Housed within the Southern Tier High Technology Incubator and partnering with Binghamton University, SUNY BEE will “nurture a vibrant start-up community for student led ventures,” Cuomo’s office said. The incubator is scheduled to open in the fall of 2016.

The Southern Tier regional economic-development council endorses the project, which is connected to START-UP NY and the governor’s Innovations Hot Spots initiatives.

START-UP NY is Cuomo’s offer to new or expanding companies and business ventures to operate tax-free in areas on or connected to campuses of the State University of New York.

New student companies that are formed in the SUNY BEE space using the incubator are eligible to participate in START-UP NY and eligible for exemption from all state taxes, Cuomo’s office said.

Part of Cuomo’s regional economic-development council initiative, the Innovation Hot Spots competition is designed to help New York attract venture capital and industry-sponsored research spending to grow new technology based companies, according to Empire State Development, New York primary economic-development organization.

Combined with private-sector interest, the NYSUNY2020 grant will reach an estimated economic impact of $33 million, with an overall estimated impact of $132 million for the incubator project, creating an additional 906 jobs over a nine-year period, Cuomo’s office said.

In addition, SUNY BEE will enable the addition of 18 more companies over nine years, each creating a total of five jobs for a total of 114 additional jobs and an estimated $33 million in economic impact, the office added.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com