Making an investment in the future of Alfred University: Livingston family creates academic program innovation fund

ALFRED, New York, May 30, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Alfred University alumnus and trustee Kevin Livingston '93 and his wife, Hanh, have created a $300,000 Academic Innovation Fund, believed to be the first of its kind in the country.

"We are not aware of any other college or university that has an Academic Innovation Fund that will operate under the same principles as this fund," said Alfred University President Mark Zupan. "It is something unique to Alfred University and outside of ordinary."

He explained, "Our faculty and staff have an opportunity to submit proposals, complete with business plans detailing start-up costs associated with a curricular innovation and expected returns in terms of incremental student enrollment and reputational impact. Once an academic program innovation takes off, some of the revenue it generates will be returned, with interest, to the Innovation Fund to perpetuate it."

The first two programs that the Academic Program Innovation Fund has invested in are data analytics and computer science. Effective with the fall of 2019, Alfred University is developing minors and majors in these two fields.

It is no accident that the Livingstons are choosing to invest in the future of Alfred University by helping its faculty create programs that will bring distinction to the University and attract new students.

Kevin Livingston is one of the founding partners of Consonance Capital, a health care investment firm established in 2005. Headquartered in New York City it has had an enviable performance record since its inception, Zupan noted.

"Kevin Livingston has demonstrated a knack for investing. So, when he thinks something is going to pay off in the long run and is willing to make an investment in it, we know it is a good deal. We are truly grateful for the Livingstons' investment in Alfred University and are excited to see how the  Academic Program Innovation Fund will create and improve upon our current academic programming. "

The Livingstons look at their gift as "seed money" that will lead to additional investments from others, "enabling faculty and staff to develop new and distinctive academic offerings that will make Alfred University stand out in the competitive higher education marketplace," Zupan said.  "Such innovation increases enrollment, improves student retention rates, promotes faculty and staff development, provides greater options for our students, enhances our students' professional success, and burnishes the reputation of Alfred University."

SOURCE Alfred University

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https://www.alfred.edu