By GREGORY ZELLER //
Welcome to the NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine … and don’t let the new name fool you, your money’s still no good here.
But Kenneth and Elaine Langone’s money is. So good, in fact, that new generations of medical students will continue to receive a top-quality education focused on primary care medicine – on the house.
Marking a landmark contribution to New York University and the NYU Langone Health System, the Langones have gifted $200 million to the Long Island-based medical school, ensuring tuition-free education for medical students – regardless of race, religion, financial need or any other factor – for years to come.
In conjunction with the nine-figure donation, the former NYU Long Island School of Medicine has been renamed the NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine, adding a measure of continuity with its Manhattan-based sister school (simply the NYU Grossman School of Medicine, which is named for its dean, NYU Langone Health CEO Robert Grossman).
The titanic gift, announced July 21 during the Long Island institution’s annual White Coat Ceremony, marks a transformative moment for the Mineola medical school, which opened just four years ago on the campus of then-NYU Winthrop Hospital (since rechristened NYU Langone Hospital-Long Island).
Gifted: (From left) Kenneth Langone, Robert Grossman, Elaine Langone and Gladys Ayala celebrate the Langones’ $200 million gift.
Grossman – who joined last week’s ceremony to welcome the 24 members of the NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine’s incoming Class of 2026 – applauded an “extraordinary gift” from the well-known Sands Point philanthropists, who originally staked NYU Langone’s tuition-free Long Island experiment back in 2018 with a $100 million donation.
“[It] ensures that, just like today’s entering class, students for generations to come can follow their passion for medicine, regardless of their background and financial status,” Grossman said.
Kenneth Langone, known best as the billionaire venture capitalist who staked Home Depot, said the now-$300 million gifted to the tuition-free medical school was an investment in Long Island, “where Elaine and I grew up.”
“By providing our future doctors with an affordable education, we are investing in a brighter and healthier future for all, particularly here on Long Island,” added Langone, who is also chairman of the NYU Langone Board of Trustees. “Providing a world-class, tuition-free medical education here on Long Island ensures many of these future doctors will remain and practice on Long Island.”
Perfect fit: The 24 students in the NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine’s Class of 2026 will graduate without massive student debt.
NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine Dean Gladys Ayala seconded Langone’s notion, trumpeting a “world-class education without the burden of overwhelming student debt” and foreseeing crops of regional students who will make “significant contributions to improving the health and wellbeing of our communities.”
“With this gift, NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine will continue to attract the brightest minds from diverse backgrounds, fostering a new generation of healthcare professionals,” Ayala said in a statement.
Langone, who’s now made four separate nine-digit donations to NYU medical schools, credited the new gift – which covers $59,738 in annual tuition costs per student – to Grossman’s “visionary leadership shaping the future of medicine.”
Grossman, in turn, credited the Langones’ re-investment to the tuition-free mission itself.
“Our goal has always been to offer exceptional opportunities to the most talented students,” Grossman said. “The focus on primary care … also allows them to meet a critical need in our local communities and have a real impact.
“I wish each of them great success on the wonderful path they have chosen.”
