SUNY Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher Discusses Economic Development in Rochester

SUNY Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher Discusses Economic Development in Rochester

For Immediate Release: Friday, May 20, 2011

Contact: Morgan Hook; morgan.hook@suny.edu; 518-320-1311

Rochester – State University of New York Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher today participated in a panel discussion surrounding economic development at the “Eyes on the Future Summit” hosted by the Greater Rochester Enterprise and The Small Business Council at St. John Fisher College.

“With the launch of our strategic plan last April, SUNY has been keenly focused on our role as a leader in New York State's economic recovery,” said Chancellor Zimpher. “As this role continues to take shape, so does the role of our campus-community partnerships. Summits like ‘Eyes on the Future’ provide an important opportunity to highlight the potential beneficial outcomes of working together toward a common goal. How we collaborate will be critical to achieving economic stability for the Rochester area and all of New York State.”

The theme of this year's summit is “Innovation.” It marks the event's fourth anniversary of bringing together community leaders in business, education, government, and the non-profit sector to engage in a dialogue on revitalizing the Rochester area.

The role of higher education in economic development is the overarching theme of SUNY's strategic plan, The Power of SUNY, which was launched in April 2010 and provides a roadmap for the system's development over the next decade.

Chancellor Zimpher is also partnering with Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to revision SUNY as an economic driver for New York State. Earlier this year, Governor Cuomo called for the creation of regional economic development councils across the state and asked SUNY to provide leadership for each of them. Alongside Chancellor Zimpher, the Governor announced NYSUNY 2020, which will make SUNY a catalyst for job growth throughout the state, strengthen the academic programs at its four University Centers, and demonstrate that New York is open for business.

Recently, Chancellor Zimpher launched the SUNY Report Card, an exclusive evaluation tool that will publicly track the university's system-wide work as an educator, job creator, community partner, and generator of boundary-breaking research. With the release of its report card, SUNY takes the unprecedented step of measuring the university system's performance against New York's greatest social and economic needs, including the alignment of SUNY's research capacity to statewide job growth and the state's ability to capture a greater share of the global green energy market, among other measures.

SUNY is embedded in every community in New York State - 93 percent of New Yorkers live within 15 miles of a SUNY campus, and virtually 100 percent live within 30 miles. In many communities, SUNY is also the region's largest employer.

Today's discussion is one of many Chancellor Zimpher has conducted across New York State in the past year as SUNY implements its strategic plan and forges partnerships with community groups, businesses, and economic development organizations. To date, she has discussed SUNY's role in economic development at the Crain's Breakfast Forum in New York City and with the Business Council of New York State, Economic Development Council of New York State, New York Council of Mayors, and the New York State Association of Counties. She also has spoken with various business associations, chambers of commerce, and other interested groups in Albany, Clinton, Fulton, Montgomery, Orange, Rensselaer, Rockland, Ulster, and Warren, and Westchester counties, as well as in the cities of Buffalo, Syracuse, and Rochester, and in the Hudson Valley.

About the State University of New York

The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive university system in the United States, educating more than 465,000 students in more than 7,500 degree and certificate programs on 64 campuses with more than 3 million alumni around the globe. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunity, visit www.suny.edu 

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