SOUTHAMPTON: State Okays College Purchase
In Albany on Tuesday, the State University of New York board of trustees unanimously approved the State University at Stony Brook's acquisition of the Southampton College campus from Long Island University.
On her way back from the capital, Shirley Strum Kenny, Stony Brook's president, said the decision will allow state university representatives, the chancellor or his designee, to begin negotiations with L.I.U. in earnest. In the meantime, the university can begin its environmental review and title searches, upon which those negotiations will be contingent.
State Senator Kenneth P. LaValle said he was "hopeful that within the next 10 days we'll have an agreement on the price to move forward with what we have to do to get on campus by September 2006."
"I've been pushing everyone to get this done and think we should have an agreement very soon," he said.
The L.I.U. trustees will meet on Friday and are expected to give David Steinberg, the university's president, the authority he needs to enter into negotiations with Stony Brook.
Although they had to wait for the trustees' decision to make it official, Dr. Kenny said "we have been talking to Steinberg and L.I.U. and we're on the same wavelength to make this an easy and amicable decision. We both very much want this to happen."
Paola Curcio-Kleinman, associate vice president of marketing and public relations for L.I.U., offered this statement: "We're pleased to learn that the SUNY Board of Trustees has authorized Stony Brook officials to go forward with negotiations. To date the discussions have been very productive and we anticipate we will continue to move in a positive direction." She gave no further comment.
Thomas F. Egan, the state university board chairman, cited the "strong support for this endeavor from the State Legislature, from the Stony Brook Council, Stony Brook President Shirley Kenny, and Acting Chancellor John Ryan" as important considerations in the decision.
Dr. Kenny added that the SUNY board's approval will once again be required for a "final sign-off" once the negotiations are completed.
If everything falls into place, next fall she plans to begin a program based on principles of environmental sustainability. "It's a very ambitious schedule," she said. "As soon as I get back from Albany, I'll need to get to work on all that."
The two schools have already successfully worked together to have Stony Brook take over the marine science program at Southampton. The facilities at Southampton allow Stony Brook access to the ocean and the ability to offer marine science as a new undergraduate major. The program was officially launched earlier this month.
No offer for the campus has been made yet, but Dr. Kenny said the state is "circumscribed by the money" that the Legislature approved for the purchase in this year's budget: $30 million, plus an additional $5 million for upgrades to the 81-acre campus.
The property has 42 buildings, including some new structures that were built by L.I.U. in a final, but failed, push for enrollment. SUNY plans to buy the campus in its entirety.
Another budget appropriation may be necessary to carry the campus while it builds a student body that will bring in tuition.
Dr. Kenny said she hopes the East End community will extend its welcome and generosity, as Robert F.X. Sillerman has done. Mr. Sillerman, the former chancellor of Southampton College and a former trustee of L.I.U., has committed to bringing the All for the Sea concert back to the campus if the purchase goes through.
With the Stony Brook and Southampton campuses only 45 minutes apart, Dr. Kenny anticipates a considerable exchange of students, faculty, and programs. But there will be a special set of majors at Southampton, and students will be able to reside there.