{"id":187087,"date":"2024-10-07T12:46:13","date_gmt":"2024-10-07T16:46:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/?p=187087"},"modified":"2024-10-07T12:46:13","modified_gmt":"2024-10-07T16:46:13","slug":"uri-joins-with-federal-state-leaders-to-celebrate-progress-of-bay-campus-revitalization","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/news\/uri-joins-with-federal-state-leaders-to-celebrate-progress-of-bay-campus-revitalization\/","title":{"rendered":"URI joins with federal, state leaders to celebrate progress of Bay Campus revitalization"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u2018We are educating the next generation of the Blue Economy workforce.\u2019<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Oct. 7, 2024<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

With the faint sound of construction on the new Ocean Robotics Laboratory in the background, University of Rhode Island President Marc Parlange welcomed more than 200 guests to celebrate progress on the $300 million, multi-phase transformation of the Narragansett Bay Campus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Bay Campus is the hub of Rhode Island\u2019s Blue Economy,\u201d said Parlange, greeting federal, state and local leaders and members of the URI community on the sunny lawn behind the Ocean Science and Exploration Center. \u201cIt\u2019s really a nexus for oceanography, ocean engineering, environment and life sciences. We have education programs that are truly world-class. We have research laboratories that are knocking it out of the park. And we have vital partnerships with industries, nonprofits, and, of course, government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have momentum. We\u2019re really progressing on the Bay Campus and this is going to continue to grow as a thriving hub of innovation,\u201d he added. \u201cWe are educating the next generation of the Blue Economy workforce.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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Rhode Island House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi addresses a crowd of more than 200 at the Bay Campus celebration.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The multi-year revitalization of the Bay Campus, home to the Graduate School of Oceanography, the Department of Ocean Engineering, and other programs, includes critical infrastructure such as a modern pier, which was unveiled in May 2023 and will be home to the state-of-the-art, $125 million research vessel Narragansett Dawn<\/em>, which is slated to be delivered in 2027. It also includes facilities upgrades such as the new Ocean Robotics Lab, which will be completed in May 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Along with the Bay Campus project, the University is undergoing renovations to the Fine Arts Center that will be completed in fall 2025. URI is in the middle of a state bond campaign \u2014 Yes on 2 \u2014 that will ask voters to approve $160.5 million for new facilities at Rhode Island College and URI. On the Kingston Campus, the bond would provide $87.5 million for construction of a new biomedical sciences building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his remarks, Parlange thanked the many stakeholders that have championed the project \u2013 from the state\u2019s congressional delegation, state and local leaders, and voters who approved two bond issues totaling $145 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rhode Island House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi recalled meeting with Parlange, shortly after he became House speaker and Parlange became URI president, to tour the University. The meeting was held at the Bay Campus and it was pouring rain. Instead of showing off the University\u2019s strengths, the tour made it clear the University needed upgrades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe were going into buildings that had leaking ceilings and there were buckets everywhere,\u201d said Shekarchi. \u201cI think I got played that day. President Parlange, you did a very good job. He said, \u2018See speaker, we need money. We need money badly.\u2019 \u2026 And when President Parlange says when you make an investment in URI, it\u2019s an investment in all of Rhode Island, it\u2019s true.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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Renowned oceanographer Robert Ballard provides a tour of the Inner Space Center on the Narragansett Bay Campus.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cWe are so fortunate to have world-class talent right here at URI in our Ocean State,\u201d he added. \u201cAnd now these facilities will be upgraded so URI\u2019s incredible researchers and students will have the infrastructure to match their capabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cURI\u2019s Narragansett Bay Campus is truly a hub for Rhode Island\u2019s ever-growing Blue Economy,\u201d said U.S. Sen Jack Reed, in a virtual message. \u201cThese infrastructure upgrades will allow the university to continue and expand its role as a national leader in this space.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse noted the work of people like world-renowned oceanographer and URI professor Robert Ballard; his wife, Sandra Whitehouse, who earned her Ph.D. in biological oceanography at the GSO; and others in pushing for renovations at the Bay Campus. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got good things happening here,\u201d he said. \u201cBut what I see is the stepchild has finally been invited to the ball. And GSO is really coming back into its own again physically.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Added U.S. Rep. Seth Magaziner: \u201cWe\u2019ve heard already about what\u2019s happening here\u2013about the brand new pier, which will host the Narragansett Dawn<\/em>, about the Ocean Robotics Laboratory, and about the forthcoming buildings for the GSO, the Ocean Engineering Complex, for the College of Engineering, and on and on. But what this shows is that in Rhode Island, we are committed to URI. We are committed to being national leaders in this space and global leaders in this space.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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URI President Parlange poses with, from left, state Rep. Carol Hagan McEntee, Brian Jordan of PLDO Strategies, and GSO Dean Paula Bontempi.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

U.S. Rep. Gabe Amo said he has used his opportunity as a member of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology to talk about the work being done at URI and ways to take advantage of its interdisciplinary approach to bolster Rhode Island\u2019s strengths. \u201cWe all have a role to play in this work,\u201d he said. \u201cI am proud to be part of a team at the state and federal level that is committed to URI\u2019s success. I look forward to more days like this where the sun is out and we\u2019re gathered to celebrate this amazing institution.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dean of the Graduate School of Oceanography Paula Bontempi<\/a> said improvements at the Bay Campus will fuel collaborations among URI Colleges of Engineering, Environment and Life Sciences, Education, and the GSO to address ocean challenges in the Ocean State and across the globe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGrand challenges in Earth\u2019s ocean include global climate change, coastal resilience, disaster preparedness, and contaminants in the marine environment,\u201d said Bontempi. \u201cNow, we have tremendous opportunities to address these, thanks to state and federal investments in the campus. This investment by Rhode Island will help to grow our Blue Economy and catalyze new areas of research, technology, and education innovations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dean of the College of Engineering Anthony Marchese noted the significance of the ocean on URI engineering, including the eightfold growth in annual research awards with $35 million last year, largely driven by ocean research, and that half of all engineering faculty at URI are funded by the Office of Naval Research. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThese facilities will not only enable us to perform the research, but to transform the intellectual property of that research into commercial enterprises that create jobs,\u201d Marchese said. \u201cThis is serious business. The future of our planet is at stake and that future is blue.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The global ocean economy, said Rhode Island Secretary of Commerce Elizabeth Tanner<\/strong>, is poised to grow by more than $300 billion in the next decade. \u201cWe here at Commerce, under the leadership of Governor Dan McKee, are working to make sure that Rhode Island gets our share of that through the Ocean Tech Hub. \u2026 URI has been a very important partner in that work and there\u2019s still so much more work to be done to grow this industry.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce and a proud representative of South Kingstown in the General Assembly, I know that URI is a critical driver of our state\u2019s economy,\u201d said state Sen. V. Susan Sosnowski<\/strong>. \u201cAnd especially here at the Bay Campus, URI is a cornerstone of our economic future. Thanks to the continued support of Rhode Islanders, this campus is on the leading edge of the Blue Economy. The infrastructure and facilities improvements made here will keep spurring innovation and help foster global connections. And we have amazing faculty and students here. And they will continue doing amazing work to take on the biggest challenges we face.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

URI Board of Trustees member David Martirano<\/strong>: \u201cAs we mentioned earlier, URI is now the number one public university in New England and we are just getting started. The Narragansett Bay Campus revitalization project is an example of the return on investment that URI provides to Rhode Islanders. In November, Rhode Island voters, with the support of our state leaders, have an opportunity to accelerate the life sciences industry in our state by supporting question No. 2 on the ballot. \u2026 This benefits all Rhode Island through job opportunities and economic growth while elevating the university on a global level.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe resources and improvements we are investing here at the Bay Campus will give future generations the tools to succeed,\u201d said state Sen. Alana DiMario<\/strong>. \u201cI am so grateful for that and I am committed to building on the progress that we have made together along with my colleagues in the General Assembly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFour years ago when I met [President Parlange and Dean Bontempi] here, this campus was looking very tired,\u201d said state Rep. Carol McEntee<\/strong>. \u201cAnd that\u2019s when the fight started. We [wanted to get this] to look like the global campus that is recognized around the world. And I think we did. I think we\u2019re on the right track.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u2018We are educating the next generation of the Blue Economy workforce.\u2019 Oct. 7, 2024 With the faint sound of construction on the new Ocean Robotics Laboratory in the background, University of Rhode Island President Marc Parlange welcomed more than 200 guests to celebrate progress on the $300 million, multi-phase transformation of the Narragansett Bay Campus. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4762,"featured_media":187091,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[79],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-187087","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187087","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4762"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=187087"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187087\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":187090,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187087\/revisions\/187090"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/187091"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=187087"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=187087"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=187087"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}