NYIT Receives Grant to Support Higher Education in Architecture and Design
May 9, 2018
New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) has received a grant exceeding $2 million from the IDC Foundation to support higher education in architecture and design. Specifically, the grant will help further develop NYIT School of Architecture and Design’s “culture of making” by enabling faculty and students to explore synergies at the boundaries of architecture, medicine, and healthcare professions, as well as combine design thinking with sophisticated and advanced digital fabrication technologies and sophisticated equipment.
In part, the grant will contribute to funding the IDC Foundation Endowed Chair of Digital Technologies in the School of Architecture and Design, the first endowed chair at NYIT. It also will support the design and construction of the IDC Foundation Digital Fabrication Lab, including a new Robotic Matter Design Lab.
Additionally, the grant will provide funding for academic activities, scholarships, projects, and the development of new post-graduate academic programs. The first recipient of the IDC Endowed Chair will oversee the establishment of two new Master of Science degree programs with specializations in Digital Fabrication and Design and Health. These proposed programs will foster collaborative and interdisciplinary efforts between the School of Architecture and Design and other NYIT schools and colleges, including NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine and NYIT School of Interdisciplinary Studies and Education.
“We aspire to transform NYIT as an institution so that the architecture, medical, and health fields can work together on unprecedented research and educational activities through design and digital technologies. We will move beyond architectural research and engage with alternative and unconventional design solutions toward a healthier built environment and a holistic approach to wellbeing,” said Maria R. Perbellini, dean, NYIT School of Architecture and Design. “Our goal is to immerse students in a transformative learning environment that advances new knowledge while blurring disciplinary boundaries and imparts a deep understanding of innovation and specialization to address globally significant issues.”
She added, “We are honored and thrilled about this partnership with the IDC Foundation and are sincerely grateful for this extraordinary commitment to NYIT. This is a true agent of change for NYIT School of Architecture and Design and supports NYIT’s mission to sustain a vibrant student-centered learning community.”
The proposed M.S. program in Digital Fabrication will focus on design in a variety of scales, from nano to macro, and will investigate the development of high-performing building components, integrated material systems for environmentally responsive building skins, smart material processes and biomaterials, leveraging the fields of architecture, engineering and health and medicine.
The M.S. program in Design and Health is being developed to focus on design aspects in built and natural environments and investigate a range of topics covering healthcare facilities design, biomedical systems, quality indoor and outdoor spaces, parameters affecting health and wellness, and solutions for better living in a more sustainable world. NYIT hopes to launch these post-professional degree programs in fall 2019.
The newly established IDC Foundation is a legacy of the Institute of Design and Construction, the former Brooklyn-based, nonprofit, technical college that educated more than 30,000 students between its founding in 1947 and its closing in 2015. The Foundation focuses particularly on funding transformational programmatic initiatives that promote innovative approaches to education in those industries and enhance the learning experience of students.
“The IDC Foundation is pleased to support New York Institute of Technology, whose mission is closely aligned with the legacy of the Institute of Design and Construction,” said Raymond R. Savino, President of the IDC Foundation. “Both share a commitment to career-oriented professional education, access to opportunity, and applications-oriented research. We are especially pleased to support the commitment of NYIT’s School of Architecture and Design to explore opportunities at the intersection of the architecture and medical fields to collaborate on unique and unprecedented research and educational activities through design and technology.”