UB Council enters new era under a new Jacobs

The passing of the torch became official at this month’s UB Council meeting where Jeremy “Jerry” M. Jacobs Jr. presided over his first meeting as chair, taking over for his father who served in that role for more than a quarter century.

“Good morning, everybody. I'm Jerry Jacobs Jr. I’m your new chairman,” he said at the start of the meeting on March 24. “In some circles I am a Jerry Jacobs, not thee Jerry Jacobs. But I'll do my best to follow well in his footsteps.”

The younger Jacobs, who serves as chief executive officer of Delaware North, a global hospitality and entertainment company, was appointed by Gov. Kathy Hochul to succeed his father as chair of the UB Council, which serves as the primary oversight and advisory body to UB, its president and senior officers.

It is an honor to be serving on the council, he told his colleagues around the table.

“The work the council has done on behalf of UB over the years is so important to advancing this great institution’s mission and I’m looking forward to partnering with all of you to further this work,” he said.

UB President welcomed the younger Jacobs and his leadership to this very important role.

“Jerry, we are excited to work with you to build upon UB’s stature as a premier public research university,” Tripathi told him. “Again, please accept my heartfelt congratulations on your appointment.”

The council’s first order of business during the meeting was to honor the elder Jacobs as chair emeritus.

Jeremy M. Jacobs Sr. was in attendance to accept from Tripathi a bronze Buffalo statute and a framed UB Council resolution in recognition of his 27 years of service on the council and his designation of chair emeritus of the UB Council. The elder Jacobs, chairman of Delaware North and chairman and governor of the Boston Bruins, has served as UB chair since 1998.

He has served the council with “great distinction and outstanding devotion for 27 years just as he has served our university in so many important capacities over the years,” Tripathi said.

“Since our founding, UB has been fortunate to have had a great many friends and benefactors supporting our strategic goals and priorities,” the president said. “But I would argue no one can be considered a more devoted champion than Jerry Jacobs.”

“Thank you, Satish, for your partnership and friendship,” the elder Jacobs responded. “It’s gratifying to see this transition to my son, Jerry, which extends my family’s commitment to the University at Buffalo.”

The UB Council, more than any SUNY campus, enjoys strong representation from the business community, the elder Jacobs said. He hopes the partnership continues between the university and the region’s companies, which depend on one another for talent, investment and intellectual property.

“If you’re inspired by my son’s leadership as incoming chairman, remember that I taught him everything he knows,” Jacobs said with a laugh. “And if you’re not, he never listened to me, anyway.”

In other council matters:

• Tripathi referred to the uncertainty surrounding the “shifting federal landscape” over the past two months, which has had an unsettling impact on higher education. UB has been working with general counsel to gain clarity on how federal actions might affect the university, but the president said UB has not engaged in any anticipatory compliance. A short time after the meeting, he sent a campus-wide email addressing the issue.
• Tripathi spoke about the governor’s proposed budget, which includes continued funding for new faculty hires and student success programs; critical campus maintenance; and $200 million for cutting-edge research and laboratories to be shared among SUNY research institutions. “We have been communicating to the members of our state delegation the need for additional capital funding to support our research activities and to support the governor’s vision of doubling our research expenditures,” Tripathi said. “We are grateful to the governor and members of the Western New York state delegation for their support of UB.”
• Provost A. Scott Weber gave a presentation that provided a current snapshot of UB and its progress, from enrollment to research to student and faculty accomplishments. “While there is definitely some uncertainty in the world, good things are happening here and I’m very appreciative of our faculty, our staff and our students,” Weber said.
• The council endorsed the naming of the Gerald Friedman, MD ’57, and Wendi Friedman Tush Professorship in Nutrition and Health. An active alumnus, Gerald  Friedman seeks to enhance his support of the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences by aiding, recruiting and retaining faculty who are focused on educational research and training in nutritional science, as part of the medical curriculum.
• The president also mentioned that UB will be hosting SUNY’s AI symposium April 8 and 9 on the North Campus, where students and faculty across the state system will explore meaningful ways AI can positively impact society.