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Senator Bruno, UAlbany
President Hitchcock Launch Construction of $45-Million
Gen*NY*Sis Center for Excellence in Cancer Genomics
Senator
Bruno heads fund-raising effort as honorary chairman
of "The Fund for Memory and Hope"
Contact: Karl
Luntta (518) 437-4980
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| Mrs. Mary Polsinello Hanley, second
from left, an Albany resident formerly of Rensselaer,
presented a check
to
Dr. Paulette McCormick, left, President Hitchcock, and
Senator Bruno for $65,000 during the groundbreaking ceremony. |
ALBANY,
N.Y. (June 24, 2003) -- Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno
joined University at Albany President Karen R. Hitchcock today
at a groundbreaking ceremony for the Gen*NY*Sis Center for
Excellence in Cancer Genomics at the University's East Campus
in Rensselaer. The new cancer research initiative, announced
last September by Senator Bruno with $22.5 million in start-up
funding from the state's Gen*NY*Sis (Generating Employment
Through New York Science) economic development program, will
enlist industry and science partners in cutting-edge investigations
into the causes and treatment of cancer. It will also create
more than 100 new Capital Region jobs.
"Senator Bruno's extraordinary vision
again has provided invaluable support for the University's
critical role in
advancing excellence in scientific research," President
Hitchcock said. �This initiative reaffirms the University's
commitment to close collaborations with partners in the private
sector and government to enhance our high academic and research
standards."
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| The
Gen*NY*Sis Center for Excellence in Cancer Genomics |
Under the directorship of UAlbany molecular
biologist Paulette McCormick, the building's 113,000 square
feet of laboratory
and office space will house industry partners in areas
related to cancer research, including genetic exploration
and pre-clinical
studies. A long-term goal of the program is designation
as a Comprehensive Cancer Center by the National Cancer Institute.
Current research partners include the Stratton Veterans
Administration
Medical Center in Albany, where McCormick is director of
Cancer Genetics, and Taconic Biotechnology, which, in partnership
with the University's Center for Functional Genomics (CFG),
operates the National Institutes of Health-funded Mutant
Mouse Regional Resource Center. The mouse center produces
transgenic (genetically modified) laboratory mice used
in biomedical research and is one of only four such centers
in the United States.
"UAlbany's East Campus has been a remarkable economic
success story," Senator Bruno said. "It is a center
for biotech advancement, and a regional leader in sustained
job growth. Through the Gen*NY*Sis program, we can capitalize
on and promote the continued growth of life sciences research
in the Capital Region at such world-class research institutions
as the University at Albany. With these strategic collaborations
and continued support from state and federal investments,
we intend to create new businesses and jobs throughout New
York, and keep them here."
"From attracting International Sematech and Tokyo
Electron to the establishment of the new Gen*NY*Sis Center
for Excellence in East Greenbush, the Capital Region is making
tremendous strides in attracting the high tech jobs of the
future to the area," Governor George E. Pataki said. "We
will continue to make smart investments that further promote
new high-tech business development and job growth in the
Capital Region and across New York State, which will help
grow and sustain our economy for generations to come."
State University of New York Chancellor
Robert King said, "The
Gen*NY*Sis Center for Excellence in Cancer Genomics is an
example of the extent to which SUNY campuses are responding
to the crucial needs of their region and state and, ultimately,
to society, with world-class research. This initiative will
contribute significantly to health research and the growing
body of knowledge about this devastating disease."
Half of the initiative's projected
cost of $45 million will come from Gen*NY*Sis program funds.
The University,
which in April launched "Bold. Vision," a historic
$500 million fund-raising campaign, will raise additional
funds through corporate and private donations. Senator Bruno
serves as honorary chairman of "The Fund for Memory
and Hope," a $25 million component of UAlbany's "Bold.
Vision." campaign.
In recognition of support, the building's
architectural design will feature a two-story "Wall of Memory and
Hope." The wall will feature plaques or inscriptions
from donors who wish to memorialize individuals whose lives
have been touched by cancer. The first plaque will be in
memory of James R. Hanley, whose 2002 death from brain cancer
inspired his mother, Mary Polsinello Hanley, to donate the
first gift to the Fund for Memory and Hope. Mrs. Hanley,
an Albany resident formerly of Rensselaer, presented a check
to Senator Bruno and President Hitchcock for $65,000 during
the groundbreaking ceremony.
"Mrs. Hanley's generous gift is testament
to her son's memory and courage," Senator Bruno said. "And
it certainly inspires hope. Everyone is touched by cancer,
and
this initiative's research into the disease can increase
the scientific knowledge base necessary for exploration into
highly advanced treatments and therapies. Someday, through
the good work of the Gen*NY*Sis Center for Excellence in
Cancer Genomics and others like it, we can put cancer in
the past."
The Gen*NY*Sis Center for Excellence in
Cancer Genomics, designed by Einhorn Yaffee Prescott, is
scheduled
for completion
in October 2004. The University's East Campus, a hub for
biomedical research, hosts 14 companies, including 12 biotech
or related companies, as well as the University's Center
for Functional Genomics and School of Public Health. Some
375 UAlbany graduate students engage in research at the
East Campus.
For information on donating to the Fund
for Memory and Hope, please contact Penelope Benson-Wright,
tel. (518)
437-4978
or [email protected], or visit www.albany.edu/campaign/giving.htm. |
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