Celebrating Next Gen

Gov. Malloy came to campus on Oct. 21 for a celebration of the final approval of Next Generation Connecticut.

Governor Dannel P. Malloy signs a copy of the Next Generation Connecticut legislation during a ceremony held at the Information Technologies Engineering Building on Oct. 21, 2013. Standing from left are Lieutenant Governor Nancy Wyman, State Sen. Gary LeBeau '85 6th year, President Susan Herbst, State Sen. President Pro-Tem Don Williams, State Sen. Tony Guglielmo '62 (CLAS), State Rep. Gregg Haddad '89 (CLAS), State Rep. Susan Johnson, State Rep Brian Becker, and State Rep. David Alexander'06 JD. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy signs a copy of the Next Generation Connecticut legislation during a ceremony held at the Information Technologies Engineering Building on Oct. 21. Standing from left are Lt.-Gov. Nancy Wyman, State Sen. Gary LeBeau ’85 (ED 6th year), President Susan Herbst, State Sen. President Pro-Tem Don Williams, State Sen. Tony Guglielmo ’62 (CLAS), State Rep. Gregg Haddad ’89 (CLAS), State Rep. Susan Johnson, State Rep Brian Becker, and State Rep. David Alexander ’06 JD. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy came to campus Oct. 21 for a ceremonial bill signing to celebrate the final approval of the Next Generation Connecticut (#NextGenCT) legislative initiative, which passed the Connecticut General Assembly with bipartisan support earlier this year.

The plan invests $1.5 billion in UConn to support major expansions across three campuses, will bring thousands of jobs to the state, and, over the next 10 years, will catalyze hundreds of millions of dollars in research investment and business activity.

Governor Dannel P. Malloy speaks during a ceremony to commemorate the final approval of Next Generation Connecticut legislation held at the Information Technologies Engineering Building on Oct. 21, 2013. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy speaks during a ceremony to celebrate the final approval of Next Generation Connecticut legislation. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)

“With the vision of making Connecticut home to the best-educated, most-skilled and productive workforce, we are investing in STEM at our flagship university to assemble a critical mass of scientific personnel, attract the best and brightest students and prepare them for 21st century jobs, and position UConn as one of the leading research institutions in the nation,” Malloy said.

Over the next 10 years, the curricular expansion and focus on STEM is expected to attract $270 million in research dollars, $527 million in new business activity, and will support 4,050 permanent jobs. Next Generation Connecticut will increase STEM graduates by 47 percent, turning out a workforce that is trained for real-world jobs.

President Susan Herbst speaks during a ceremony to commemorate the final approval of Next Generation Connecticut legislation held at the Information Technologies Engineering Building on Oct. 21, 2013. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)
President Susan Herbst speaks during the ceremony. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)

“This is a truly historic occasion, both for UConn and for all of us in Connecticut who believe our flagship university has a vital role to play in the state’s economic vibrancy and competitiveness,” said President Susan Herbst. “UConn is immensely grateful to the state officials who helped make Next Gen possible, and extends special thanks to Gov. Malloy for his vision, courage, and leadership.”

Horea Ilies, associate professor of mechanical engineering, shows a virtual reality demonstration to Governor Dannel P. Malloy after a ceremony to commemorate the final approval of Next Generation Connecticut legislation held at the Information Technologies Engineering Building on Oct. 21, 2013. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)
Horea Ilies, associate professor of mechanical engineering, shows a virtual reality demonstration to Gov. Malloy, after the ceremony. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)
Horea Ilies, associate professor of mechanical engineering, left, Governor Dannel P. Malloy, Kazem Kazerounian, interim dean of engineering and Morad Behandish, a Ph.D. student of mechanical engineering examine objects from a virtual reality demonstration after a ceremony to commemorate the final approval of Next Generation Connecticut legislation held at the Information Technologies Engineering Building on Oct. 21, 2013. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)
Horea Ilies, associate professor of mechanical engineering, left, Gov. Malloy, Kazem Kazerounian, interim dean of engineering, and Morad Behandish, a Ph.D. student in mechanical engineering examine objects from a virtual reality demonstration. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)
Institute of Materials Sciences students show a superconductivity experiment to Governor Dannel P. Malloy following a ceremony to commemorate the final approval of Next Generation Connecticut legislation held at the Information Technologies Engineering Building on Oct. 21, 2013. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)
Institute of Materials Science students show a superconductivity experiment to Gov. Malloy following the ceremony. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)