According to a statement recently released by the school, Renaissance Technologies founder James Simons and his wife are donating $150 million to Stony Brook University in New York.
Governor of New York Andrew Cuomo and the University are scheduled to announce the gift at the school’s campus on Long Island. The donation is the largest in the history of the State University of New York. At the event, Cuomo will present a plan to increase student access, hire faculty and create partnerships with industry on Long Island, as well as put $35 million in capital funds towards constructing a medical and research center.
“The gift will have a profound and everlasting impact on the Long Island region and the state, particularly in terms of health care, economic development, and human and intellectual capital,” Cuomo said.
Simons, the founder of the hedge fund, is also president of Euclidean Capital, and a former chairman of Stony Brook’s mathematics department. His wife, Marilyn Simons, is an alumna of the University.
