File photo - Michael Bloomberg speaks during the Sohn Investment Conference in New York May 4, 2015. (REUTERS/Brendan McDermid)
NEW YORK — Bloomberg Philanthropies is donating $100 million to a Cornell University graduate school for a new high-tech New York City campus breaking ground Tuesday.
Cornell Tech was breaking ground for its new campus on Roosevelt Island. The first academic building will be called the Bloomberg Center in honor of Emma and Georgina Bloomberg, the daughters of former New York City mayor and Bloomberg Philanthropies founder Michael Bloomberg.
New York City's current mayor, Bill de Blasio, was to join his predecessor at the ceremony.
Cornell Tech was founded when it was selected in December of 2011 as the winner of New York City Economic Development Corporation's Applied Sciences NYC initiative, which sought proposals for a university to develop a campus in partnership with the city.
The effort was intended to spur the growth of the high-tech industry in New York City.
Cornell Tech began classes in January 2013 at temporary space in Manhattan donated by Google.
There are currently 15 faculty members, two dozen Ph.D. students in several disciplines and four master's programs spanning the fields of engineering, health care and business.
The first phase of the new campus will open in summer 2017. When fully completed, the campus will span 12 acres.
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