SUNY Chancellor King Announces Expansion of Building Bridges Student Grant Competition
July 6, 2026
Program Provides Grants to SUNY Student Groups Leading Projects that Promote Civic Engagement, Community Connections, and Collaboration
Part of SUNY's Efforts to Boost Civil Discourse and Civic Education and Engagement
Albany, NY — State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. today announced the expansion of SUNY's Building Bridges Student Grant Competition. The expansion of the program, included in the 2026 State of the University Agenda, will empower additional SUNY students to complete projects that bring people together and strengthen the culture of their campus and community. The grant competition provides funding to SUNY student groups leading projects that promote civic engagement, community connections, and collaboration on their respective campuses.
"Empowering our students to come together, to learn, and to grow is a cornerstone of SUNY's commitment to civil discourse, civic engagement, and student success," said SUNY Chancellor King. "The Building Bridges Grant Competition is an excellent example of how SUNY students are leading the way on their campuses. Through the expansion of this grant program, SUNY is ensuring our students have the resources they need to engage in constructive conversations to connect with more members of their communities and create a welcoming environment for everyone on their campuses."
The SUNY Board of Trustees said, "Thanks to the support of Governor Hochul and the State Legislature, SUNY can invest in important programs that allow our students to pursue opportunities that develop their skills in civil discourse and civic engagement. We are proud to support our students' efforts to engage with all parts of their campus communities through the expansion of this grant program."
The Building Bridges Grant Competition provides grant funding to student projects that work to build bridges across differences on their respective campuses in areas such as civil discourse, anti-hate and bias, and fostering constructive dialogue for students. The initial round of awards, announced in January, provided five campus groups $5,000 each to lead their projects.
Following the high demand for the program during its first year, SUNY will expand the program to provide 25 additional student groups with grant funding to lead projects that strengthen their communities and build connections across lines of difference. Applications for the Building Bridges Grant Competition will open on Constitution Day, September 17, and will close on November 6.
The Building Bridges Grant Competition builds on SUNY's commitment to expanding civic engagement efforts throughout the SUNY System. Recently, Governor Hochul announced the expansion of the Empire State Service Corps, including 1,000 available spots and new program areas to meet New York's most pressing needs. In September 2025, SUNY announced the second cohort of the Civil Discourse and Civic Education and Engagement Fellowship Program to promote civil discourse among students, faculty, and staff throughout campus communities and to advance SUNY's commitment to civic engagement as an essential outcome of higher education. In 2024, SUNY announced efforts to support nonpartisan student voter registration and civic engagement, including campus participation on the national ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge. Additionally, SUNY updated its General Education Framework in 2024 to include a core competency in civil discourse to ensure students develop strong lifelong skills.
The Building Bridges Student Grant Competition also builds on SUNY's efforts to invest in outstanding students, faculty, and staff and support initiatives throughout the SUNY System. SUNY has awarded funding through the Mental Health First Aid Grant Program to strengthen campus-wide approaches to student mental health and well-being, launched the Outdoors for All program to provide campuses with grants to facilitate year-round outdoor opportunities, and allocated more than $125,000 in grants in 2024 to furnish or enhance interfaith prayer and reflection spaces at 22 SUNY campuses to help promote inclusivity and a welcoming environment for all students.
About the State University of New York
The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY’s 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country’s oldest school of maritime, the state's only college of optometry, 12 Educational Opportunity Centers, over 30 ATTAIN digital literacy labs, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.7 million students across its portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2025, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and annually one in three New Yorkers who earn a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit suny.edu.
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