The State University of New York Polytechnic Institute: Alain Kaloyeros Named Founding President

 


In support of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s education-driven economic growth agenda, the State University of New York Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) today announced the SUNY board of trustees has appointed Alain Kaloyeros as the founding president of SUNY Poly.

SUNY Poly is New York’s globally recognized, high-tech educational ecosystem, formed from the merger of the SUNY College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) and the SUNY Institute of Technology.

SUNY Poly offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in the emerging disciplines of nanoscience and nanoengineering, as well as cutting-edge nanobioscience and nanoeconomics programs at its Albany campus, and degrees in technology, professional studies, and the arts and sciences at its Utica/Rome campus.

Calling itself the world’s most advanced university-driven research enterprise, SUNY Poly boasts more than $20 billion in high-tech investments, more than 300 corporate partners, and a statewide footprint. The 1.3-million-square-foot Albany NanoTech megaplex is home to more than 3,500 scientists, researchers, engineers, students, faculty and staff, in addition to Tech Valley High School. The Utica/Rome campus offers a unique high-tech learning environment, providing academic programs in technology, including engineering, cybersecurity, computer science and the engineering technologies; professional studies, including business, communication and nursing; and arts and sciences, with degrees and course offerings in natural sciences, mathematics, humanities and social sciences.

Thriving athletic, recreational and cultural programs, events and activities complement the campus experience. SUNY Poly operates the Smart Cities Technology Innovation Center at Kiernan Plaza in Albany, the Solar Energy Development Center in Halfmoon, CNSE’s Central New York Hub for Emerging Nano Industries in Syracuse, the Photovoltaic Manufacturing and Technology Development Facility in Rochester, and the Smart System Technology and Commercialization Center in Canandaigua.

SUNY Poly founded and manages the Computer Chip Commercialization Center on its Utica campus and also manages the $500 million New York Power Electronics Manufacturing Consortium with nodes in Albany and Rochester, as well as the Buffalo High-Tech Manufacturing Innovation Hub at RiverBend, Buffalo Information Technologies Innovation and Commercialization Hub, and Buffalo Medical Innovation and Commercialization Hub.

“Dr. Alain Kaloyeros has led SUNY’s College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering since its inception, helping make this first-of-its-kind institution a global model and helping position New York state as a leader in the nanotechnology-driven economy of the 21st century,” said SUNY Board Chairman H. Carl McCall. “It is only fitting that Dr. Kaloyeros be the one to build that model and bring it to scale through the continued development and expansion of SUNY Polytechnic Institute.”

CNSE was originally founded in April 2004 in response to the rapid changes and evolving needs in the educational and research landscapes brought on by the emergence of nanotechnology. Under Kaloyeros’s leadership there, CNSE generated more than $20 billion in public and private investments. 

In 2014, CNSE merged with the SUNY Institute of Technology to form SUNY Poly, which today offers students a one-of-a-kind academic experience and provides more than 300 corporate partners with access to an unmatched ecosystem for leading-edge research and development, and commercialization of nanoelectronics and nanotechnology innovations.

This establishment of CNSE at SUNY Poly has been a critical cornerstone of New York’s high-technology strategy to be a truly global resource that enables pioneering research and development, technology deployment, education and commercialization for the international nanoelectronics industry. 

“As the visionary who built CNSE into a world-class, high-tech, and globally recognized academic and economic development juggernaut, Dr. Alain Kaloyeros is the clear choice to lead SUNY Polytechnic Institute into the future,” said SUNY Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher. “The unprecedented statewide expansion of the campus’s unique model and continued strong partnership with Gov. Andrew Cuomo is testament to SUNY’s promise as New York’s economic engine and stature as an affordable, world-class educational institution. I am confident that as its president, Dr. Kaloyeros will continue to build on SUNY Poly’s success and contributions to New York.”   

Kaloyeros received his Ph.D. in experimental condensed-matter physics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1987.  A year later, Gov. Mario M. Cuomo recruited him under the SUNY Graduate Research Initiative. Since then, Kaloyeros has been actively involved in the development and implementation of New York’s high-tech strategy to become a global leader in the nanotechnology-driven economy of the 21st Century.

“SUNY Polytechnic Institute is a revolutionary discovery and education model with two coequal campuses in Utica and Albany, and a key component of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s vision for high-tech innovation, job creation and economic development in New York state," Kaloyeros said. "I am privileged and humbled to be selected for the honor of leading this world-class institution, and its talented and dedicated faculty, staff and students. I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to the governor, Chairman Carl McCall, the SUNY board of trustees, and Chancellor Nancy Zimpher for their continued confidence and support.”

For information, visit www.sunycnse.com and www.sunypoly.edu.

--Jennie Grey

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Education reporter
The Saratogian and The Record newspapers
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