University at Buffalo President Satish K. Tripathi today submitted a proposal to the NYSUNY 2020 Challenge Grant program in support of a $375 million plan to help revitalize Buffalo’s economy by relocating UB’s medical school to downtown Buffalo.
Under the proposal, the university will implement the next phase of the UB 2020 plan for academic excellence, spurring rapid development of Buffalo’s emerging biomedical economy — creating new jobs, spinning off new biotechnology companies and expanding educational opportunities for students.
More than 3,000 new full-time jobs will be created in Western New York by 2018 under the proposal. The $375 million plan, to be implemented over the next seven years, will be financed by:
— $35 million from the governor’s challenge grant
— $50 million to be raised in private gifts to the UB medical school
— $50 million from private partnerships
— $40 million in research grants
— $100 million from UB capital and other sources and
— $100 million from medical school program fee
The medical school project will serve as catalyst for additional development with Kaleida Health, Buffalo’s largest hospital system — and other private and public entities — making it a $655 million investment in Buffalo’s downtown medical campus, according to the proposal.
UB is asking the state legislature to approve a$200 per semester tuition increase, a proposition already being frowned upon by some in Albany. A financial-aid program financed by the tuition revenues will guarantee minimal increases in tuition for students and families making less than $75,000 per year and tuition would not increase for families with annual incomes up to $40,000.
UB’s tuition is one of the lowest among the 60 U.S. research universities that make up the Association of American Universities (AAU). Even with the proposed tuition increase, UB would remain one of the most affordable major public universities in the U.S.
UB already has begun moving medical research facilities to downtown Buffalo to help grow the city’s heath care and biotech industry. In 2005, UB opened the New York State Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Life Sciences. In June, the university will open the UB Institute for Healthcare Informatics, leveraging a $15 million investment from computer giant Dell. In the fall, UB and Kaleida Health will open a $291 million clinical care and research facility.
The proposal also was praised by SUNY Chancellor Nancy Zimpher who, with Gov. Cuomo, developed the NYSUNY 2020 Challenge Grant program to increase the economic impact of SUNY’s four university centers and strengthen educational opportunities for students.
UB President Satish K. Tripathi said, “This proposal will enable UB to pursue its plan for academic excellence and contribute more significantly to Buffalo’s emerging biomedical economy. It will create jobs in our community and greatly expand educational opportunities for our students.