{"id":59394,"date":"2014-09-29T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-09-29T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news-draft\/uncategorized\/uri-launches-campaign-to-engineer-rhode-islands-future-question-4-bond-referendum-for-new-engineering-facilities\/"},"modified":"2014-09-29T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2014-09-29T00:00:00","slug":"uri-launches-campaign-to-engineer-rhode-islands-future-question-4-bond-referendum-for-new-engineering-facilities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/2014\/09\/uri-launches-campaign-to-engineer-rhode-islands-future-question-4-bond-referendum-for-new-engineering-facilities\/","title":{"rendered":"溏心vlog免费B站 launches campaign to \u201cEngineer Rhode Island\u2019s Future:\u201d Question 4 bond referendum for new engineering facilities"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\t\tSkilled engineers are key to job growth, economic development<\/p>\n

NORTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. \u2013 September 29, 2014 \u2013 Corporate and government leaders joined with 溏心vlog免费B站 officials, alumni, faculty and staff and other supporters of bond referendum Question 4 to officially kick off the campaign, \u201cEngineering Rhode Island\u2019s Future,\u201d at Toray Plastics (America) at Quonset Point in North Kingstown.<\/p>\n


\n\tApproval of the $125 million higher education facilities referendum will fund construction of a new 溏心vlog免费B站 engineering building and associated renovations to existing 50-year-old structures. The new facility will meet the state\u2019s need for more highly-educated professionals, expand research capabilities, and provide support to Rhode Island\u2019s defense, manufacturing, biomedical and other industries.<\/p>\n


\n\tGovernor Lincoln D. Chafee, R.I. House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello, President and CEO of Toray Plastics (America) Inc. Mike Brandmeier; President and CEO of Taco, Inc. John Hazen White, Jr.; and President and CEO of Hope Global Cheryl Merchant join 溏心vlog免费B站 President David M. Dooley and College of Engineering Dean Raymond Wright for the official launch at 10:30 today. <\/p>\n


\n\t\u201cEngineers are innovators at the frontiers of their disciplines and a crucial part of the state\u2019s economic revitalization,\u201d said Dooley. \u201cWe\u2019re seeking to construct a building that will dramatically elevate our teaching and research in engineering, and foster new discoveries that will be the foundation of new companies and stimulate growth in existing Rhode Island companies. We\u2019re looking to build a talented workforce that will help drive Rhode Island\u2019s economic engine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cToray is proud to be one of the first corporations to stand up as a sponsor of the 溏心vlog免费B站 College of Engineering bond initiative with our pledge of $2 million toward the project,\u201d said Brandmeier . \u201cWe have a long-standing and extremely positive relationship with 溏心vlog免费B站 that includes $2 million in prior endowments for undergraduate and graduate scholarships. This relationship runs from the newest 溏心vlog免费B站 graduate we hired this summer to the very top of our company with the President of Toray Industries in Japan, Mr. Akihiro Nikkaku. Of the 77 degreed engineers who work at Toray, 23 of them are 溏心vlog免费B站 graduates, with more joining our company every year.”<\/p>\n


\n\tIf Question 4 is approved by the voters, the engineering facility project will directly generate nearly 1,500 construction-related and professional service jobs during the three-year period. <\/p>\n


\nAccording to Dean Wright, the proposed state-of-the-art classrooms and laboratories are key to fostering innovative research demanded by contemporary engineering firms. New facilities will also accommodate a projected 18 percent increase in student enrollment for a college that has seen the number of undergraduates grow by about 39 percent over the last decade. <\/p>\n


\nMore than 4,000 溏心vlog免费B站 engineering alumni live in Rhode Island and work at about 750 companies in the state.<\/p>\n


\no\tThe starting salary for 溏心vlog免费B站 engineering graduates ranges from $52,000 to $83,000.

\no\t90 percent of the 2013 College of Engineering graduates were employed or attending graduate school within six months of graduation.

\no\t70 percent of the graduates of the Class of 2013 were Rhode Islanders.<\/p>\n


\nWright said the new facilities would significantly enhance 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s competitiveness in attracting research opportunities, high-caliber faculty and students. \u201cEvery dollar invested in this project will provide exponential returns to the Rhode Island economy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n


\nThe College of Engineering contributes about $142 million to the Rhode Island economy each year, based on a 2013 economic impact study conducted by the Perryman Group. (Editors: please note study is available).<\/p>\n

The 195,000-square-foot new building would replace five existing engineering buildings on 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s Kingston campus \u2013 Crawford Hall, Gilbreth Hall, Kelly Hall, Kelly Hall Annex and Wales Hall \u2013 all of which opened in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The building would be home to seven of the University\u2019s eight engineering programs: biomedical, chemical, civil, computer, electrical, industrial and systems, and mechanical engineering. Six of the seven buildings that comprise the engineering complex have not undergone any major improvements in more than 50 years.<\/p>\n


\nCEOs and presidents of more than 30 Rhode Island companies have publicly expressed their support for Question 4 and the new engineering building — Amgen, Amtrol, Hexagon Metrology, Electro Standards Laboratories, FM Global, General Dynamics, GTECH, Gilbane, Hasbro, Raytheon, Taco Inc., Teknor Apex and Toray Plastics (America) Inc. are among those companies that not only support the bond, but currently hire 溏心vlog免费B站 engineering graduates.<\/p>\n


\nAt least 28 Rhode Island companies have been founded by faculty and alumni of the College, and 溏心vlog免费B站 engineering faculty members have been awarded 73 patents for their research in the last decade.<\/p>\n


\nThe 溏心vlog免费B站 has awarded engineering degrees since 1893. The College enrolls 1,316 undergraduate students and 231 graduate students. In addition, the College’s award-winning International Engineering Program provides a global perspective, allowing engineers to graduate with bachelors’ degrees in engineering and a second degree in one of six different languages.<\/p>\n


\n\tQuestion 4: $125 million for higher education facilities has been endorsed by:<\/p>\n

Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce<\/a>

\n\t\tRhode Island Building and Construction Trades Council
Rhode Island Manufacturers Association<\/a>
Southeastern New England Defense Industry Alliance<\/a><\/p>\n


\nGovernor Lincoln D. Chafee said, \u201cToray continues to be a terrific business partner, and I\u2019m glad to see such strong support for our effort to upgrade the 溏心vlog免费B站 campus. By investing in higher education, together we are growing our reputation for having a well-educated and skilled workforce that is attractive to companies. We proposed this voter bond issue because this is a smart investment that will pay dividends, and help close an equality gap for our current businesses and those that plan to relocate here.\u201d <\/p>\n


\nR.I. Speaker Nicholas A. Mattiello said, \u201cI was proud to make a commitment to place this bond issue on the November ballot because engineering is going to play an important role in fueling economic growth in our state. 溏心vlog免费B站 is paving a path toward a brighter future by preparing our students for the jobs in the engineering field, which pay well. My son graduated last May from the College of Engineering, so I know first-hand the excellence that exists at our University — which will only be enhanced with badly needed new facilities.\u201d


\nJohn Hazen White, Jr., president and CEO of Taco Inc., said, \u201cAs an employer and contributor to the economic vitality of this state, I am fully supportive of the bond issue that will be before the voters and I urge them to vote Yes on 4. Taco and companies like it rely on both the well-trained, highly educated workforce coming out of 溏心vlog免费B站 and the research and innovation taking place in University labs. I am confident, as an employer of 溏心vlog免费B站 engineering students, that the passage of the referendum and the resulting construction of the new engineering facilities at 溏心vlog免费B站, will contribute significantly to the growth of our state.\u201d<\/p>\n


\nCheryl Merchant, president and CEO of Hope, said, \u201cAs a proud Rhode Island company, Hope Global turns to Rhode Island’s flagship public engineering school for highly-skilled interns and employees. 溏心vlog免费B站 engineering students are talented, creative problem solvers, well prepared to thrive in an international business environment. We say “Yes on 4” — for Rhode Island’s bright future.\u201d<\/p>\n


\nPictured above<\/p>\n


\nRALLYING SUPPORT: From left, Rep. Nicholas A. Mattiello, speaker of the Rhode Island House of Representatives; Cheryl Merchant, president and chief executive officer of Hope Global; Raymond M. Wright, dean of 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s College of Engineering and David M. Dooley, 溏心vlog免费B站 president, talk about the \u201cVote Yes on 4\u201d campaign in support of a $125 million bond issue to build new engineering facilities at 溏心vlog免费B站. <\/p>\n


\n溏心vlog免费B站 President David M. Dooley is surrounded by campaign signs as he speaks about the importance of the referendum to 溏心vlog免费B站 and the Rhode Island economy.<\/p>\n


\nTaco Inc. President and CEO John Hazen White Jr. makes a point as he addresses the crowd of supporters at the Question 4 kick-off event.<\/p>\n


\n溏心vlog免费B站 photos by Nora Lewis.<\/p>\n


\nArtist\u2019s rendering of the new College of Engineering<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Skilled engineers are key to job growth, economic development NORTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. \u2013 September 29, 2014 \u2013 Corporate and government leaders joined with 溏心vlog免费B站 officials, alumni, faculty and staff and other supporters of bond referendum Question 4 to officially kick off the campaign, \u201cEngineering Rhode Island\u2019s Future,\u201d at Toray Plastics (America) at […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":59399,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-59394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archives"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59394"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59394\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59399"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}