Earlier this year, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver appointed me Chairman of the Assembly Task Force on University-Industry Cooperation. The Task Force focuses on university-industry collaborations which have the potential to yield intellectual and economic benefits. New York currently administers and supports a wide array of highly technological research programs at leading colleges, universities, and research institutions throughout the State, such as Centers of Excellence and Centers for Advanced Technology. As Chair, I facilitate dialog between the State, researchers, the private sector and entrepreneurs to promote existing research and development initiatives and generate new ideas and goals for academic and high technology university-industry partnerships.

Starting this fall, I began touring some of New York’s premier academic institutions to learn, first-hand, the impact of the State’s commitment to high-tech research and development and commercialization efforts. My first stop was SUNY New Paltz, which has become a leader in 3-D printing technology in the Hudson Valley region. I met with President Donald Christian and other faculty members from the School of Science and Engineering and the School of Fine and Performing Arts. I was pleased to learn about a new Digital Design and Fabrication certificate that the school has initiated. It will bring faculty and students from the School of Science and Engineering and the School of Fine and Performing Arts together. This program is the first of its kind in the State.

In fact, the 3-D Printing Initiative at SUNY New Paltz has been endorsed by the Mid-Hudson Economic Development Council as one of their “top priority projects” to be considered for State funding in this year’s round of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Regional Council Initiative.

The next leg of the tour led me to western New York. The University at Buffalo is the largest research-intensive public university in New York State. I visited the North Campus and had the opportunity to see the Electrical Engineering Clean Room in the new Engineering Building, Davis Hall, the earthquake related research at the Multidisciplinary Center for Extreme Events Research, and try a driving simulator at the NYS Center for Engineering Design and Industrial Effectiveness. My visit also coincided with the 2013 Bright Buffalo Niagara Venture Forum. The University at Buffalo’s New York State Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics & Life Sciences sponsored events at the Forum which gave me the opportunity to meet with entrepreneurs and investors, business and economic development professionals, and many others involved in the advancement of the region’s high-tech economy.

Also attending the Forum were Assemblyman Robin Schimminger, Chair of the Assembly Committee on Economic Development, Job Creation, Commerce and Industry and State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. The Comptroller and I discussed the “In-State Private Equity Investment Program” of the New York State Common Retirement Fund. Since this program’s inception in 1999, an overall total of $684 million has been invested in New York companies which have generated strong returns for the pension fund, created jobs and boosted local economies.

On the way back from Buffalo, I made two stops in Rochester. First, I visited the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and met with RIT President Bill Destler. I also toured the Golisano Institute for Sustainability where we discussed the university’s ongoing industry partnerships and received an update on a Long Island wine industry initiative presented by the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute.

My second stop was the University of Rochester’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics, where I had a chance to meet with the scientists there as well as see the impressive technology at this national laboratory. I learned about the depth of region’s strength in optics and photonics research and facilities from representatives of the Center for Emerging and Innovative Sciences (a Center for Advanced Technology), Eastman Business Park and the University.

These first visits introduced me to the wide scope of our State’s most cutting edge technological advancements. I look forward to future visits and intend to continue the Task Force’s work to develop further opportunities that encourage university-industry collaboration in New York State.