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At his annual State of the University address, ������������ President Harvey Stenger spoke about the University’s strength and growth in many important areas and its consistency over time.

On Tuesday, Jan. 28, at the Watters Theatre, Stenger highlighted topics including admissions and enrollment, the EXCELERATE campaign and ������������’s financial report as well as the groundbreaking work and research done by the University’s faculty.

“All of these achievements, projects and actions are helping us to get better and bigger at a steady and consistent pace,” Stenger said.

������������ in the rankings

In 2024, the University was named to Forbes’ list of the top 10 Public Ivies. Forbes based its methodology on traditional metrics of excellence, including selectivity in admissions and students’ standardized test scores and high school GPA. The poll also included a survey of employers and hiring managers. That group reported that they are 42% more likely to hire public university graduates than they were five years ago, largely because they find public university graduates to be just as capable and as strong as employees as their Ivy League counterparts.

“I love sharing this graphic from Forbes because there we are at the top,” Stenger said. “Alphabetical order can have its benefits. And it’s some impressive company. Georgia Tech, Illinois, Michigan. Forbes says ������������ is right there among the best public institutions in the country.”

Stenger also noted several other rankings and lists the University was named to in the past year. They include:

• U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Colleges,” No. 73 overall and No. 34 among public institutions (tied for ������������’s highest ranking to date)
• U.S. News & World Report named ������������ as the No. 4 public university on its list of the “Best Values” in the nation
• Forbes: “”
• The Wall Street Journal’s “Best U.S. Colleges,” No. 1 SUNY, No. 2 public and No. 13 overall in New York state
• The Princeton Review named ������������ to its list of the top 20 public universities for career placement for a third consecutive year
• Time/Statista placed ������������ on its list of the top 100 universities for “Shaping Future Leaders”

EXCELERATE exceeds its goals

The EXCELERATE: Moving at the Speed of ������������ comprehensive campaign concluded in June 2024, raising $261.6 million from more than 35,000 donors. It surpassed the initial campaign goal of $220 million and a revised super-goal of $250 million. When matching funds from the state’s University Center Endowment Challenge are added, EXCELERATE will more than triple what was raised in the University’s most recent prior campaign in 2012.

“It’s an incredible accomplishment for our Advancement team and all the faculty and staff who were involved in the campaign,” Stenger said. “Thank you to the donors who have so graciously given back to ������������.”

The EXCELERATE campaign will make the University stronger through focusing on areas including:

• $134 million toward the student experience, which includes student internships and research and physical spaces such as the Health Sciences Campus and the Baseball Stadium Complex
• $67 million for scholarships and other student financial aid
• $30 million for faculty through competitive research funds and endowed positions
• $16 million in support of the ������������ Fund, an all-time high, which advances innovation and supports immediate needs

Stenger also highlighted the growth of the ������������ Foundation’s endowment, which grew from $112.7 million to more than one quarter of a billion dollars during the span of the EXCELERATE campaign from 2017 to 2024. The Foundation spent $179.3 million over that time, providing essential support to many corners of campus.

NENY and industry partnerships

In December 2024, ������������ entered into new memoranda of understanding with BAE Systems and the Guthrie Clinic, which will have lasting benefits for the University’s faculty, staff and students as well as the greater community. The MOU with BAE will focus on the mutual advance of power electronics, energy storage research and workforce development. A new agreement with the Guthrie Clinic will eliminate repetitive contract reviews and expedite the launch of new research projects between the University’s faculty and Guthrie’s medical professionals.

Stenger noted several of the major updates for the New Energy New York project. ������������, through the National Science Foundation’s Regional Innovation Engines program, was named the home of the Upstate New York Energy Storage Engine in January 2024. Meera Sampath, who had previously served as associate dean of research for the University’s Watson College of Engineering and Applied Science, was named CEO for the Energy Storage Engine. Battery NY, a subset of the NENY project that focuses on the development and production of new battery technologies, will be located at 10 University Blvd. in Johnson City, the former Gannett newspaper printing facility.

“The Energy Storage Engine is a coalition of more than 40 academic, industry, nonprofit, state and community organizations that will work together to drive domestic self-sufficiency and achieve global competitiveness in battery technology,” Stenger said. “It will provide grants for use-inspired research and development, support regional energy storage companies with training and mentoring, and partner with community organizations to develop a skilled workforce for a full-scale battery economy.”

Leading in research

Stenger used several examples and case studies to show how ������������ is a leader in research. During the 2023–24 academic year, the University recorded $68.5 million in research expenditures and estimates that the figure will reach $71.9 million for the current academic year.

A Stanford University study found that 33 ������������ faculty members rank among the top 2% in their specific academic field, based on the number of publications they produce and other citation metrics. Those top faculty are spread among the University, with 15 in Harpur College of Arts and Sciences, 13 in Watson College, three in the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, and one each from the School of Management and the College of Community and Public Affairs.

Stenger noted two of those 33 in particular: Lijun Yin in computing and Karin Sauer of biological sciences. Yin, whose work has more than 11,000 citations, was named a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers; and Sauer, who has received $13 million in research grants, was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology.

Stenger also used the work of Assistant Research Professor of Biological Sciences Lindsey Swierk and Assistant Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences Kou-Ching (KC) Mei as glimpses into what ������������’s faculty accomplish. Swierk’s research on scuba-diving lizards in Costa Rica has received international attention from the New York Times, NPR and the BBC, and Mei’s work on gene therapy treatment could lead to new hope for patients with certain genetic conditions.

“KC is striving to find solutions that would allow more patients to receive gene therapy, especially those who might have limited options otherwise,” Stenger said. “������������ faculty are doing incredible things in medicine, biology, computer science, artificial intelligence, energy storage and so much more.”

Adding students, faculty and staff

The growth of the student, faculty and staff populations was a significant part of Stenger’s address. ������������ received a record 61,700 applications for fall 2024 enrollment, including 53,000 first-year applications, 4,700 for graduate programs and 4,000 transfer students. To put that in perspective, ������������’s 53,000 undergraduate applications surpassed the total received by public flagships in neighboring states such as the University of Connecticut, the University of Massachusetts and Rutgers University-New Brunswick. The University has a record-high enrollment of 18,815 students.

“This allows us to increase our already impressive selectivity in the admissions process,” Stenger said. “We accepted just 39% of the undergraduate first-year applications we received. To compare that to our peers in the SUNY system, that’s much more selective than Stony Brook, 49%, or the University at Buffalo, 69%.”

First-year students who joined ������������ in fall 2024 had an average high school GPA of 96 and an average SAT score of 1,408. They come from all corners of the state, with 32% from upstate New York, 27% from New York City and 22% from Long Island. The University has seen its domestic out-of-state enrollment increase by 82.5% since 2018, with 1,799 of its 18,815 students hailing from other states.

������������, however, is adding faculty and staff at an even more rapid rate than students. The number of full-time tenured and tenure-track faculty is up 63.3% since 2011, and the number of professional staff has risen by 65% over that period. It means a net increase of 233 new faculty and approximately 800 professional staff.

“We’re growing,” Stenger said. “And we’re getting better by providing students with the faculty, the staff and the resources they need to have a truly outstanding experience. Please pause and note those numbers. Faculty up 63.3%. Staff up 65%. Students up 40.9%. That’s how you get bigger and better.”

Finances, construction and renovation

The major highlight of ������������’s financial status is that revenues have increased by 91.4% since 2011. The full 2019–24 Financial Report is available online. Revenue has grown in part because of the larger number of enrolled students during this period, driving revenue collected through tuition, room and board, and fees. Support from the state legislature has also risen, growing by 44.4% since 2011. Stenger thanked Gov. Kathy Hochul, State Sen. Lea Webb and Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo for their advocacy on behalf of SUNY.

The University will complete $575 million of construction and renovation projects between 2024 and 2027. Highlights of that work include:

• has reopened after a major renovation, providing a modern, collaborative learning space.
• The paver project on the plaza deck will resume in the spring, creating new seating areas and landscaping.
• The East Gym’s $35 million expansion and renovation is underway and expected to be finished by May 2026.
• The fieldhouse opened in November 2024, providing an indoor space for intercollegiate athletic teams.
• A $60 million classroom and lecture hall building is set to open for the fall 2027 semester, providing a state-of-the-art space for teaching and learning.
• Phase one of renovations to the Science 3 building is nearly complete, updating classrooms, laboratories and offices.
• A second-floor expansion to the Chenango Room, opening in April 2026, will add much-needed event space on campus and host a Panera Bread on the first floor.
• A $15 million renovation of the College-in-the-Woods and Oneida Hall is expected to be complete by August 2026.
• A new residence hall between College-in-the-Woods and Mountainview is set to open by the start of the fall 2027 semester.
• The Fine Arts Building and the Anderson Center for Performing Arts will receive a $163 million renovation. That project, currently in the planning stage, will be finished by January 2031.

“I think we are touching on all aspects of University life through this construction and renovation, giving our students, faculty and staff the best spaces in which to live, study and work,” Stenger said.

Elsewhere in his address, Stenger noted the unveiling of the Harriet Tubman statue on the Downtown ������������ Freedom Trail, which is set for March 21, 2025. He welcomed Atul Kelkar, dean of Watson College since July 2024, and David Whitmore, who starts as vice president of Advancement, executive director of the ������������ Foundation and chief advancement officer on March 10, 2025. ������������ Athletics was awarded the for a second consecutive year. The Athletics Department also celebrated competing in the 2024 Olympics, being drafted by the New York Mets and being named the America East’s Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

Consistency

Concluding on the theme of consistency, Stenger noted that while ������������ has changed considerably over the past 14 years, it has not wavered on its core values of providing an excellent education to its students. The consistent adherence to teaching, research and expanding opportunities for all members of the University community has Stenger encouraged about the years ahead for ������������.

“Being named a top 10 Public Ivy and the follow-up story from Forbes makes me feel excited about ������������’s future,” he said. “People around the country are really starting to take notice. To quote the Forbes article, ‘������������ is a gem.’”