MSRC Acquires New Undergraduate Program

David Conover, Dean and Director of MSRC, announced to the department yesterday that Long Island University and Stony Brook University (SBU) agreed on a plan to seek the transfer of the Southampton College undergraduate marine science program to SBU effective September 2005. Under the terms of the agreement, Southampton College marine science majors, who are in good academic standing, will have the option of seamlessly transferring to Stony Brook to continue their studies. Conover expounded, “This is a pivotal moment in the history of MSRC. In the first 35 years of its existence, MSRC has become one of the leading graduate programs in marine sciences in the country, mirroring the rise to prominence of SBU as a whole. The addition of undergraduate marine science majors enables MSRC to expand its leading role in Stony Brook’s commitment to excellence in integrating undergraduate education fully into the mission of a research university.”

These students will take classes at Stony Brook and at the Southampton College Campus in facilities that will be leased by Stony Brook on a year-to-year basis for the next three years. Marine science students who require housing will reside at Stony Brook. The Southampton College marine science students who seek to transfer to Stony Brook must apply by DEC 1.

We are very pleased with the outcome of these negotiations, because our students always have been of paramount concern,” said Dr. David Steinberg, president of Long Island University. “Our goal has been to ensure that these marine science students continue to receive the highest quality of education possible. The agreement with Stony Brook, an institution that has built its own stellar reputation in the sciences, accomplishes just that,” he asserted.

“Stony Brook University faculty members and students have collaborated with their counterparts at Southampton College on many projects over the years,” said Dr. Shirley Strum Kenny, president of Stony Brook. “Southampton has a first-rate science program that boasts 34 Fulbright scholars, the majority of whom are marine science students. As a university that has been nationally recognized for integrating research into undergraduate education, and has one of the leading marine sciences graduate programs in the nation, Stony Brook offers a great opportunity for the Southampton College students.”