The State University of New York Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Polytechnic Institute or SUNY Poly) is a
public university with campuses in
Marcy and
Albany, New York. It is part of the
State University of New York
The State University of New York (SUNY, , ) is a system of public colleges and universities in the State of New York. It is one of the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the United States. Led by c ...
(SUNY) system. Founded in 1966 using classrooms at a primary school, what became SUNY Poly is New York's public
polytechnic college. The
Marcy campus, formerly the SUNY Institute of Technology, has a
Utica, New York mailing address and was established in 1987. The
Albany campus was formerly a component of the
University at Albany, and was established in January 2003.
SUNY Poly is accredited by the
Middle States Commission on Higher Education
The Middle States Commission on Higher Education (abbreviated as MSCHE and legally incorporated as the Mid-Atlantic Region Commission on Higher Education) is a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit membership organization that performs peer evalua ...
. The university offers over 25
bachelor's degrees, 18 graduate level degrees, and five
doctoral degrees within five different colleges. SUNY Poly students come from across the state of New York, throughout the United States, and more than twenty other nations, with more than 25,000 alumni.
History
Originally a graduate and upper-division (transfer) institution, SUNY Poly offered classes in temporary locations throughout Utica and at extension sites for several years until the first buildings were constructed on the permanent Marcy campus in the 1980s. In 2002, the SUNY Board of Trustees approved a mission change, enabling SUNY Poly to offer upper-division programs in professional, technological, and applied studies. In 2003, SUNY Poly admitted its first class of freshmen, becoming a four-year institution.
This class graduated in May 2007.
The university's name derives from the 2014 merger of the SUNY Institute of Technology and the
College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering
The College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering is the college of nanotechnology at the SUNY Polytechnic Institute campus in Albany, New York. Founded in 2004 and formerly a component of the University at Albany, SUNY, the college underwent rap ...
, formerly a component of the
University at Albany. This merger created five colleges within the institute, including the College of Arts & Sciences, the College of Engineering, the College of Health Sciences, the College of Business Management, and the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering.
Currently, the university offers programs in the disciplines of
engineering,
engineering technology, and other programs and degrees in business administration, technology, nursing, design, professional studies, and the arts and sciences at its Utica campus, and nanoscale science,
nanoscale engineering
Nanoengineering is the practice of engineering on the nanoscale. It derives its name from the nanometre, a unit of measurement equalling one billionth of a meter.
Nanoengineering is largely a synonym for nanotechnology, but emphasizes the engine ...
, as well as
nanobioscience
Nanobiotechnology, bionanotechnology, and nanobiology are terms that refer to the intersection of nanotechnology and biology. Given that the subject is one that has only emerged very recently, bionanotechnology and nanobiotechnology serve as bla ...
programs at its Albany campus.
Campuses
Marcy
The Marcy campus occupies more than 400 acres, with major buildings, including three residential complexes, surrounded by trees and green landscape. The "west campus" property of more than 300 acres is reserved for the development of the Marcy NanoCenter. Construction and renovation projects totaling $100 million in recent years included a new student center, field house, and residence hall complex—all completed in 2011.
There are two academic halls on campus: William R. Kunsela Hall and James H. Donovan Hall.
Opened in March 2003, the Peter J. Cayan Library is on the southern portion of the campus.
Albany
Notable people who have visited SUNY Poly's Albany campus include President
Barack Obama and
Apple Inc. co-founder
Steve Wozniak
Stephen Gary Wozniak (; born August 11, 1950), also known by his nickname "Woz", is an American electronics engineer, computer programmer, philanthropist, inventor, and technology entrepreneur. In 1976, with business partner Steve Jobs, he c ...
.
File:Aerial photo of SUNYIT in Fall 2011.jpg, Aerial view of Marcy campus
File:CNSE Aerial 72dpi.jpg, Aerial view of SUNY Poly's Albany Campus
File:ObamaCNSE.jpg, Former U.S. President Barack Obama prepares for a speech at the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering in 2012.
Academics
SUNY Poly is organized into five colleges:
* College of Arts & Sciences
* College of Business Management
* College of Engineering
* College of Health Sciences
* College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering
Research
Semiconductors and microchips
SUNY Poly's Albany campus is also the site of a pilot scale semiconductor research and development center in
Albany, NY
Albany ( ) is the State capital (United States), capital of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, also the county seat, seat and largest city of Albany County, New York, Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, abo ...
. In addition to nanoscale science and engineering research, development, and commercialization efforts at the Albany campus, there are wide-ranging research efforts by faculty, staff, and students at the institution's Utica campus, including in the areas of:
*Maintenance
*Additive manufacturing
*Quantum computing
*Artificial intelligence
*Anthropology
*Redox biology
*Yawning and brain cooling
*Sports, games, and athletics in evolutionary perspective
*Cloud computing
*Cybernetics
*Design exposure and entrepreneurship
*Robotics
Cleanrooms
Currently, a
US$250–300 million
semiconductor manufacturing research facility known as the Computer Chip Commercialization Center or "Quad-C" is located on the Marcy campus. The research facility leases space to Danfoss Power Solutions in the building.
Student life and governance
Residence halls

Three residence halls are on the Marcy campus, including the oldest, Adirondack Residence Hall, Mohawk Residence Hall, constructed in the late-1990s and located on the northern portion of campus, and Oriskany Residence Hall, completed in 2011. In 2019, SUNY Poly broke ground on its next residence hall, opened in the fall 2020 semester. The residence hall is designed to be “zero-net, carbon certified,” exceeding existing energy codes with the infrastructure to add future on-site renewable energy production systems. Once these systems are installed, the building will use equal to or less than the energy annually it can produce on-site through renewable resources.
Students attending the Albany campus gain a comprehensive residential and dining experience, health, wellness, and counseling services, as well as additional recreational opportunities as a result of a partnership with the University at Albany. All residential students are housed at the University at Albany Freedom Apartments adjacent to the SUNY Poly campus.
Athletics
SUNY Poly is a member of the
National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
Division III and the
United East Conference (formerly known as the North Eastern Athletic Conference, or NEAC). The current roster of SUNY Poly varsity sports includes baseball, softball, and men's and women's basketball, cross country, lacrosse, soccer, and volleyball. SUNY Poly's athletic nickname is the Wildcats.
The Wildcat Field House, completed in 2011, features a state-of-the-art fitness center, two full-sized basketball courts and four volleyball courts, indoor practice facilities for all Wildcat teams, a running track, an expansive training room, team rooms, and offices for the athletics department's administrative staff and coaches.
[
] A new multi-sport turf field, new baseball field, and an updated softball field were also constructed as part of the Wildcat Field House project. The SUNY Poly basketball teams play their home contests in the Campus Center Gym. The "CC" was completed in the early 1980s as the original home for Wildcat Athletics. Upon the completion of the Wildcat Field House, the Campus Center was retrofitted to be used solely for basketball. The most recent update to the gym was in 2016 when the scoreboard was updated and the floor and paint were refinished to match the current team identity.
In 2020-21 the Wildcats will change conferences, transitioning from the North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) into the North Atlantic Conference (NAC).
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:State University Of New York Polytechnic Institute
Universities and colleges in Oneida County, New York
Universities and colleges in Albany County, New York
Education in Capital District (New York)
1966 establishments in New York (state)
Educational institutions established in 1966
Science and technology in New York (state)
Engineering universities and colleges in New York (state)
Utica–Rome metropolitan area
Polytechnical
Public universities and colleges in New York (state)