Stanford@CCNY a No Go

The proposed deal for billion-dollar applied sciences collaboration falls apartIn a startling turn of events, Stanford University pulled out of the race to create a state-of-the-art applied science and engineering school in partnership with CCNY.The joint venture, announced earlier this fall, was part of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's plan to jumpstart a Silicon Valley on the Hudson in New York as an incubator for the next generation of Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerbergs. To entice bidders, the mayor put $2 billion up for grabs.Stanford president John L. Hennessy made the announcement in a prepared statement earlier today. In pulling out of the competition, he noted, "We gained through this process a fruitful partnership with our colleagues at the City College of New York, a partnership that will strengthen both of our programs and will continue to benefit New York City students for many years to come."President Lisa Staiano-Coico put a positive spin on the news through an email to the CCNY community.(Inadvertently, she spelled Stanford as "Standford" in the message.) President Lisa noted that the discussions with Stanford opened the door to "opportunities to work faculty to faculty and program to program with Stanford University to provide transformational opportunities for our students and our faculty scholars."The bidding had come down to the wire with seven proposals in the running. According to wide speculation, Stanford@CCNY was deadlocked with a proposal from Cornell University in collaboration with Techion, known as the MIT of Israel. Columbia, also in the running, had fallen from favor, after the dean of its engineering school received a no confidence letter signed by a number of faculty earlier this month.Stanford, a private college known for its innovative technology programs, partnered with CCNY to gain a New York City foothold and benefit from the college's strong science and engineering departments.Money most likely played a role in Stanford's decision to withdraw. Earlier today, Cornell announced that it had received a $350 million donation for its proposed campus. The New York Times speculated that Cornell had moved into the top spot, noting, "Officials said Stanford had dropped its bid in part because it was being outpaced in fund-raising by Cornell."The news was a blow to CCNY students and faculty who had high hopes for the proposed start-up. Mayor Bloomberg will announce a winner from among the remaining six proposals next month.