Jim Simons: A Life of Scholarship, Leadership and Philanthropy

Beloved buddy, beneficiant philanthropist, pioneering mathematician, and visionary chief James H. Simons died on Could 10 on the age of 86. 

For six many years, Jim Simons was Stony Brook College’s most vocal champion. His instructing, analysis, educational and volunteer management, and philanthropy have eternally remodeled the college and his generosity of spirit was matched solely by his probing intelligence and profound optimism for the longer term. Whether or not as chair of the Division of Arithmetic or his management on the Stony Brook Basis Board of Trustees, Jim at all times noticed Stony Brook’s potential. He seemed past what was and noticed what may be — and he helped convey that future to life.  

“Jim was a exceptional buddy and advocate, each to Stony Brook and to me personally. I’m honored to have recognized him,” mentioned Stony Brook College President Maurie McInnis. “Stony Brook is extremely lucky to have been part of his life and to have shared in his generosity, brilliance, humor, and endless curiosity in regards to the world round him. The College is infinitely higher due to Jim, from the scholars he taught to the analysis he led, the college he supported, and the packages he helped construct.”

An Enduring Affect

When Stony Brook President John Toll employed Jim to guide the Division of Arithmetic in 1968, he couldn’t have foreseen the magnitude of his resolution. Because the youngest chair within the historical past of the college, Jim joked that he was given the chance as a result of he was the one one that would settle for the problem. Jim’s stereotypical humor apart, he introduced his curiosity and mind to bear on the position and constructed one of many nation’s high math departments throughout his 10-year tenure as chair.

 Jim unassumingly credited his success to the crew he recruited: “I used to be capable of rent some nice folks…and we actually constructed up an impressive division. And that was enjoyable.” 

One in all his most prized relationships was along with his colleague within the Division of Physics, Nobel Prize winner C.N. Yang and founding director of the eponymous Institute for Theoretical Physics on Stony Brook’s campus. Their many conversations impressed Jim’s deep curiosity within the intersection of geometry and physics, in the end resulting in the institution of the famend Simons Heart for Geometry and Physics (SCGP). 

“From Archimedes to Newton to Einstein, a lot of probably the most profound work in physics has been deeply intertwined with the geometric facet of arithmetic,” mentioned Jim upon the 2008 announcement of the reward that will fund the SCGP. “Since then, specifically with the arrival of such areas as quantum discipline concept and string concept, developments in geometry and physics have turn out to be if something extra interrelated. The brand new Heart will give most of the world’s finest mathematicians and physicists the chance to work and work together in an atmosphere and an structure rigorously designed to reinforce progress. We imagine there’s a probability that work completed on the Heart will considerably change and deepen our understanding of the bodily universe and of its primary mathematical construction.”

Since then, the SCGP has advanced into an internationally famend assume tank whose everlasting members have been elected as Fellows of the Royal Society, the American Mathematical Society, the Japanese Nationwide Academy of Sciences, in addition to obtained the Fields Medal, Shaw Prize, Packard Fellowship, Clay Analysis Award and  Dannie Heineman Prize in addition to many different awards. 

Past his educational management, Jim helped encourage the subsequent technology of volunteer leaders by means of his participation in and stewardship of the Stony Brook Basis Board of Trustees. 

“One of many nice privileges of my life has been to know and work with Jim Simons for the previous three many years,” mentioned Richard Gelfond ’76, Stony Brook Basis Board of Trustees Chair. “His service on the Board strengthened all of us. He had a method of instantly attending to the basic points and asking the appropriate questions. His distinctive wit, unimaginable mind and philanthropy, notably towards Stony Brook, will at all times be remembered. I’ll miss him mightily.”

Philanthropy on an Astonishing Scale

Jim’s affect at Stony Brook extends far past his mental contributions. He met his spouse Marilyn by means of Stony Brook, and collectively they created a unprecedented legacy of impactful philanthropy for the college that has surpassed $1 billion. As if their very own exceptional contributions weren’t sufficient, the Simons immediately impressed greater than 2,100 folks to contribute an extra $230 million in philanthropy for scholarships, college assist, and the college’s endowment.

Via Jim and Marilyn’s foresight, strategic counsel, and funding, they’ve been instrumental in making Stony Brook a extremely ranked nationwide analysis college and an unmatched agent of progress and social mobility.

Examples of a few of Jim and Marilyn’s substantial investments embrace:

The Simons Heart for Geometry and Physics (SCGP), which opened at Stony Brook College in 2010 due to Jim and Marilyn’s philanthropic assist and Jim’s perception that progress in arithmetic and theoretical physics may be made when researchers come collectively in an atmosphere that encourages the sharing of concepts, bridging divides and rising innovation. 

Along with the middle, the Simons established the Simons Math and Physics Working Funds to make sure that Stony Brook’s Arithmetic and Physics departments constantly rank among the many high within the nation.

The Simons additionally performed a big position in elevating what’s now the famend Renaissance College of Drugs. Via an identical problem reward introduced in 2011, Jim and Marilyn remodeled analysis throughout a number of areas of the medical and life sciences. In the end, their matching reward and the philanthropy it impressed offered crucial funding for analysis excellence within the College of Drugs in addition to different elements of the college, college hires by means of new endowed professorships, and recruitment of top-level graduate and undergraduate college students. On account of this historic funding, Stony Brook was capable of construct the Heart for Medical and Analysis Translation (MART). 

Introduced in late 2020, the Presidential Innovation and Excellence Fund has enabled Stony Brook to draw preeminent students, pursue cutting-edge analysis, and win management of the Heart for Local weather Options on Governors Island by means of the New York Local weather Change.The Simons Basis offered seed cash for the fund, with an identical problem that attracted extra philanthropy from different beneficiant donors. This fund makes it potential for Stony Brook to spend money on present strengths and pursue massive and daring alternatives that deal with the world’s most crucial challenges of the longer term.

The Stony Brook Simons STEM Students Program welcomed its inaugural cohort in 2023. Spearheaded by David Spergel, president of the Simons Basis, and championed by Jim and Marilyn, this system supplies complete monetary assist for a number of the nation’s most proficient college students to pursue undergraduate STEM levels at Stony Brook. By offering alternatives for traditionally underrepresented college students to affix the frontlines of worldwide STEM challenges, this life-changing expertise permits these distinctive students to turn out to be the change wanted on the planet in the present day.

Jim and Marilyn’s $500 million Simons Infinity Funding is the biggest unrestricted endowment reward in American larger schooling, and its affect on Stony Brook is predicted to succeed in $1 billion by means of matching contributions from New York State and different philanthropic leaders. Investments stemming from this reward may have a direct affect on the college’s skill to pursue new alternatives and supply scholar scholarships, endowed professorships, modern analysis, and wonderful medical look after generations into the longer term. 

The Simons Basis supported Stony Brook’s partnership with Richard Leakey, serving to to ascertain the Turkana Basin Institute in 2012. The institute, which was initially constructed to assist the research of prehistory and human origins, now attracts researchers from world wide from a number of disciplines who’re fascinated by finding out the Turkana Basin’s distinctive panorama and making use of their findings to handle a number of the world’s largest challenges. 

In assist of the Stony Brook-led New York Local weather Change, the Simons Basis and Simons Basis Worldwide pledged $100 million as an identical reward and have impressed different main philanthropists and local weather options advocates to lend extra assist. As a coalition of the world’s main universities, firms, and group organizations, the Change might be a world hub of analysis, innovation, schooling, and collaboration to handle the worldwide local weather disaster.

Based in 1984, the Simons Summer time Analysis Program has helped greater than a thousand highschool college students conduct modern analysis alongside esteemed college mentors.  

Via these initiatives and packages, Jim’s affect and affect spanned the tenure of former Stony Brook leaders John Toll, Jack Marburger, Shirley Strum Kenny, and Sam Stanley — and that affect lives on by means of the scholars, college, and analysis he enabled and thru the relationships he made.

“Jim was among the many most interesting folks I’ve ever recognized,” mentioned Samuel L. Stanley, Jr., MD. “His magnificent thoughts was enhanced by his imaginative and prescient and optimism. The outcome was an incomparable chief and philanthropist who has helped present Stony Brook with infinite prospects and the capability to succeed in unparalleled heights within the areas of analysis, schooling and discovery. ”

“Jim was not solely mathematically good but additionally a visionary advisor about what Stony Brook may — and did — turn out to be,” Shirley Strum Kenny mentioned. “Stony Brook wouldn’t be Stony Brook with out Jim’s imaginative and prescient and dedication.”

The satisfaction of seeing Stony Brook thrive fueled their generosity, as Jim mirrored: “Stony Brook gave me an opportunity to guide —and so it has been deeply rewarding to observe the College develop and flourish much more.”

“Jim Simons leaves an incredible and incomparable legacy at Stony Brook College,” mirrored President McInnis. “His inquisitiveness, imaginative and prescient, caring, and extraordinary philanthropy have made an indelible and irreplaceable affect on each nook of the College. Via his generosity, his mind, and his management he’ll proceed to complement lives and advance science and information at Stony Brook for generations to come back.”