A Message from President Riley
By Office of the President | Sep 8, 2026
Beginning the Year with Purpose
Dear Downstate Community,
Welcome back! A new academic year brings fresh energy to our campus. I am pleased to welcome our returning students, faculty, and staff, and especially our newest students. You are beginning a demanding and rewarding journey that will test your abilities, reveal new strengths, and build friendships that can last a lifetime.
At our 32nd Annual White Coat Ceremony, we welcomed the College of Medicine Class of 2030 into the profession. Keynote speaker Akeem Marsh, M.D., DFAACAP (COM ’09), reflected on the Downstate foundation that shaped his career in child and adolescent psychiatry. He was joined by Kathleen Reeves, M.D., FAAP, President and CEO of The Arnold P. Gold Foundation, in affirming that scientific excellence and humanism are inseparable.
That commitment is also reflected in our new Doctor of Nursing Practice program in Clinical Leadership and Innovation, the first of its kind in SUNY, and our BS-RN Program, which allows nurses who already serve Downstate to learn, grow, and advance here.
Change is becoming visible across campus. Demolition in the parking lot is an early step in our physical transformation. The work will require patience, but it signals progress toward a campus better equipped for education, research, patient care, and service.
This week, we commemorate the 25th anniversary of September 11. We will honor those who were lost, recognize those who answered the call to serve, and reflect on the resilience that carried New York and our nation forward.
At University Hospital at Downstate, the relaunch of the BioVigil hand-hygiene system renews a fundamental promise to our patients: clean hands and safer care.
We also marked Brooklyn artist George Cephas Ford’s 100th birthday with the dedication of the George Cephas Ford Children’s Reading Corner. Through more than 130 books, Mr. Ford helped generations of Black children see themselves and their possibilities on the page. His legacy now gives our young patients a place to find comfort, read, and dream while receiving care close to home.
As we begin this year, let us meet its opportunities with curiosity and purpose, support one another, and embrace the challenges that help us grow.
I look forward to all we will learn, achieve, and celebrate together.
Welcome back and best wishes for a successful year.
Wayne J. Riley, M.D.
President
SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University