Pharmacy school site announced

The Binghamton University School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences will be constructed at 96 Corliss Ave. in Johnson City, one block off of Main St. near UHS Wilson Medical Center, a short drive from Lourdes Hospital and only 2.3 miles from the University’s main campus. The announcement was made Sept. 25, by Sen. Thomas W. Libous, accompanied by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo and Binghamton University President Harvey Stenger at a news conference at the Innovative Technologies Complex.

The $60 million school will be constructed on a 5.49-acre parcel that is being purchased from Indian Valley Industries, which will relocate elsewhere in Broome County. Funding for the $2 million purchase comes from the $10 million the governor included in his executive budget for site acquisition and design work.

Libous, who made the actual site announcement, said that today begins the next phase of developing Binghamton University as a world-class university. “This is only the beginning of a rebirth of the village [of Johnson City],” he said. “We will also use the START-UP NY program to bring in pharmaceutical companies with employees and research and activity and growth. It starts out with students, but it will bring in start-up companies and research in the pharmaceutical industry.”

“This is not just school of pharmacy – and we desperately need a school of pharmacy,” said Cuomo. “It’s a school of pharmacy in a start-up zone working with the hospital as an economic engine. One of the big growth fields is biomedicine and it’s projected to be one of the hot growth sectors for this economy. So it’s not just about a school, it’s about a school and an economic engine for the future. That’s the formula, not just for Binghamton but for what’s working all around the state. “We’re providing the teaching of tomorrow, and now we have the ingredients for the academic and economic engine for the region.”

“Education should be linked to greater employment,” said Stenger. “For years we’ve been working hard to do that at Binghamton University. Our dream of the school of pharmacy matches that vision, and pharmacy is probably the fastest-growing career in our country today.

“We’re building on our strengths in the health sciences and healthcare,” Stenger added. “And we’ll engage world-class researchers, students and entrepreneurs, health science corporations and healthcare partners in cutting-edge, transdisciplinary research; integrated product development; and innovative education in pharmacy. This school will allow us to pursue solutions for critical global health problems while also supporting economic growth.

“What’s exciting for me is this adds a very significant piece to Binghamton University’s portfolio of research and innovation,” said Lupardo. “The field of pharmacy is evolving. It’s able to tie into biotechnology and advances in science that will helps us develop custom drugs to treat individuals based on their genetic profiles and this will allow Binghamton University to play an important role in helping to develop the medicines of tomorrow.”

Focusing on the history of the Upstate New York economy, Cuomo added that the school of pharmacy will be built on the site of the original Endicott Johnson company. “What was Johnson City and made us in the first place, on that site, and we will give birth to what will be the economy of the future of Binghamton and Johnson City. What’s better than the history of Upstate New York?” he asked. “The future of Upstate New York.”

The 70,000 square-foot building will include nine state-of-the-art research labs, offices for 31 faculty and staff, one lecture hall, three additional classrooms, and teaching labs. The school will enroll approximately 380 students when fully enrolled after four years: 320 in the PharmD program and an additional 60 PhD students.

The University submitted its full proposal to establish the school this month and has launched a search for its founding dean, who is expected to be in place by early 2015. The dean will then begin hiring faculty – initially about a dozen clinical faculty and a dozen research faculty – and
developing curriculum to prepare for enrollment of the first cohort of students in fall 2017.

“Close proximity to a hospital is a critical aspect of site selection for a school of pharmacy because of the need for hospital rotations for students,” said Stenger. “We’re absolutely thrilled to have finalized this location in Johnson City and thank the governor for his strong support of our plan to establish this school to serve our students and our state.”

Design of the facility, by JMZ Architects and Planners, P.C., of Glens Falls, N.Y., has begun and is expected to take about 14 months, followed by a bidding process. Groundbreaking should take place in spring 2016.