The $10-million award will focus on downtown revitalization initiatives in Downtown Poughkeepsie.
The envisioned building is a more than 200,000-gross-square-foot facility that will bring together a range of STEM disciplines.
For the first time since 2016, new construction activity outpaced household formations. Yet, the nation still faces a supply shortfall of 3.8 million homes.
The envisioned building is a more than 200,000-gross-square-foot facility that will bring together a range of STEM disciplines.
NEW YORK—Fordham University announced on March 6 a $100-million gift from Maurice (Mo) Cunniffe, FCRH ’54, and Carolyn Dursi Cunniffe, Ph.D., GSAS ’71, which will fuel a major investment in the future of STEM education at the university.
The gift is the largest in Fordham’s history, and will be used to break ground on a cutting-edge, integrated science facility on the Rose Hill campus in the Bronx and launch and expand in-demand STEM degree programs.
The envisioned building is a more than 200,000-gross-square-foot facility that will bring together a range of STEM disciplines, and will feature wet and dry teaching labs, research space, classrooms, and student lounges, with a large, open green space in front. It will be located along Southern Blvd. on the Rose Hill campus’ eastern edge across from the New York Botanical Garden, replacing existing surface parking.
University President Tania Tetlow said Fordham is well poised to nurture the next generation of leaders in STEM. “For centuries, the Jesuits have been world-class scientists and mathematicians, always connecting those fields to what it means to be fully human. Fordham will stand out for integrating science and technology with ethics, humanities, and our other strengths in the professions,” Tetlow said.
Fordham’s broader STEM vision also includes expanding computer science programs at Lincoln Center, strategically repurposing book storage space (Quinn X), and increasing enrollment capacity for both graduate and undergraduate students. In addition, Fordham plans to launch a new full-time M.S. program in physician associate studies at its Westchester campus.
“Mo and Carolyn’s extraordinary gift is a testament to the transformative power of investing in Fordham’s vision for STEM education and research that also lifts the rest of the university,” said Roger A. Milici Jr., vice president for development and university relations. “This is philanthropy at its best.”
Mo and Carolyn Cunniffe have been longtime supporters of the university. The couple made a $20-million gift in 2016 to establish the Maurice and Carolyn Cunniffe Presidential Scholars Program, which was the second-largest gift in Fordham’s history at the time. Their generosity has been recognized with the naming of Cunniffe House and the Carolyn Dursi Cunniffe Fountain on the Rose Hill campus.
Mo Cunniffe’s parents were Irish immigrants. He graduated from Fordham Prep and Fordham College with a degree in physics, followed by graduate studies in economics and finance at NYU. Mo had successful careers as a scientist, a consultant with McKinsey, an investment banker, and an entrepreneur. He served on Fordham’s Board of Trustees from 1995 to 2004, and then from 2005 to 2014. He is now a trustee emeritus.
He expects the gift will help Fordham remain a “world-class university” by attracting talented students and teachers capable of solving the most pressing problems of our time.
“The future seems to be in the AI arena … and the computer science arena,” Mo said. “Aren’t those the people most likely to change the world so that your great-great-grandchildren will live a better life than you did?”
Carolyn Dursi Cunniffe also served on Fordham’s Board and is a trustee emerita. She grew up in a family of eight with two brothers who graduated from Fordham. She studied at the Sorbonne in Paris and the University of Perugia and earned her masters and Ph.D. at Fordham in French literature. Carolyn had a successful career for many years as a vice president at Revlon then Chanel, and as a senior vice president at Cablevision.
Carolyn said she believes it is vital for the school to offer a strong STEM curriculum and that investing in STEM education will offer students the opportunity for a well-rounded educational experience.
Expanding the sciences is a key priority for Fordham. Nearly half of college-bound high school students say they want to major in STEM fields, and STEM-related jobs are projected to grow significantly faster than non-STEM positions over the next decade. The gift will allow Fordham to invest in meeting the demand for STEM education, and to provide state-of-the-art facilities for teaching as well as research. Of the $30 billion the government dispersed for research and development in fiscal year 2023, approximately 95% went to STEM disciplines including the health sciences.
“This gift opens up extraordinary possibilities for students and faculty, and allows us to scale our programs and move into areas in the sciences that haven’t even been developed yet, fields that may appear 10 years from now that we can’t even anticipate,” said University Provost Dennis Jacobs. “We’re all so grateful to Mo and Carolyn for their extraordinary generosity and their belief that Fordham can be one of the nation’s greatest institutions of higher learning.”
The $10-million award will focus on downtown revitalization initiatives in Downtown Poughkeepsie.
For the first time since 2016, new construction activity outpaced household formations. Yet, the nation still faces a supply shortfall of 3.8 million homes.
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