Building an academic health system: Donor support elevates care, research and teaching

We are reimagining the standards of care. Driving lifesaving discoveries through innovation. Educating current and future generations of health care leaders. And going beyond what’s expected as we embrace new thinking, without ever losing sight of our commitment to improve the health and quality of life of the communities we serve.  

This vision has been fueled by the generosity of more than 207,000 donors through our Outpacing the Impossible comprehensive fundraising campaign. The impact of their philanthropy can be felt throughout our footprint — from our world-class clinical care to our pioneering medical school and our groundbreaking research — and has elevated Northwell to the national stage.  

“Northwell’s growth as an academic health system has been nothing short of remarkable,” says Michael J. Dowling, Northwell’s president and chief executive officer. “Our donors believe in our mission and have helped advance our pursuit of excellence in medicine and education so we can create a future with improved health for all people in our care.” 

Since the public launch of Outpacing the Impossible in 2018, our donors have given more than $1.4 billion to uphold Northwell’s promise to the people we serve by supporting capital projects, improving our 21 hospitals and vast clinical programs, accelerating cutting-edge research and patient care, and funding our endowment. 

Endowment support has been integral to Northwell’s growth and standing, as it goes beyond the lives that can be saved today to ensure better health outcomes for tomorrow. Endowed gifts provide financial stability in perpetuity, allowing us to make strategic investments to fund new research, advance medicine, support education and recruit the foremost experts. In total, donors contributed more than $256 million in endowment gifts during the campaign.  

“As an academic health system, Northwell’s dedicated education, research and clinical care components work in tandem continuously to inform and improve each other,” says Brian T. Lally, president of the Northwell Foundation and chief development officer for Northwell. “When you infuse philanthropic support into this ecosystem, you accelerate the possibilities of what can be accomplished.”  

In an industry that often equates longevity with excellence, Northwell has fearlessly challenged that traditional narrative. “As a health system, we are so much younger, competing against places that are more than 100 years old. It has allowed us to do things differently and distinguish ourselves across all facets of the organization,” says David L. Battinelli, MD, executive vice president and physician-in-chief of Northwell and the inaugural Deborah and Lawrence Smith Dean of the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell.  

Established through a unique partnership between Hofstra University and Northwell Health and aided by a generous endowment from Donald and Barbara Zucker, the medical school has embodied an innovative approach to medical education to provide students with real-world clinical training. The Hofstra-Northwell partnership has also yielded a school for advanced nursing and physician assistant studies to help meet growing demand for these professions.    

“Northwell continues to demonstrate that you can build an academic health system rooted in a culture of commitment that is built upon the sheer talent, dedication and innovative spirit of team members who hold true to our mission,” says  Dr. Battinelli, whose endowed deanship was named in honor of the school’s founding dean, Lawrence G. Smith, MD, MACP, and his late wife, Deborah, through a $3 million gift from Broadridge Financial Solutions. “And to address the big societal issues and disparities in equity that exist from generation to generation, we must bring in more students, of all backgrounds, who also believe in that mission.” Dr. Battinelli, a founding member of the medical school who chaired the committee tasked with writing its curriculum, will use the endowment for student scholarships so that more students can graduate debt-free. 

With steady momentum, the Zucker School of Medicine is consistently named among the best graduate schools for medicine by U.S. News & World Report, ranking in the top tier for medical research and recognized as one of the most diverse schools in the nation.  

“Northwell stands out because so much of what we’ve accomplished has been  
possible because we created our own, very highly regarded medical school,” adds  
Dr. Battinelli. “That education goes beyond the classroom into our teaching hospitals and to our established clinicians and researchers who are continuously learning as they seek new, better ways to care for patients.” 

Our stature as an academic health system is bolstered by extensive research activity that drives breakthroughs to improve patient lives. The globally renowned Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, the home of research at Northwell, boasts more than 50 laboratories, 3,000 clinical studies and 5,000 researchers and staff who are working to raise the standard of medical innovation.  

Under the leadership of Kevin J. Tracey, MD, president and CEO of the Feinstein Institutes, the Karches Family Distinguished Chair in Medical Research and global pioneer of the field of bioelectronic medicine, we’re making significant advances in areas such as cancer, sepsis, inflammation, autoimmune disorders, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and schizophrenia. 

“We’re anchored in our goal to produce knowledge to cure disease and change the future of health,” says Dr. Tracey, who studies the molecular basis of inflammation and vagus nerve stimulation and oversees the work of the donor-funded Tatyana and Alan Forman Family Laboratory of Biomedical Science. “At the Feinstein Institutes, we’ve built a collaborative culture that leads us to entirely novel treatments.”  

Importantly, with donor support, Northwell’s research endeavor enhances our excellent clinical care by bringing new treatments to the bedside sooner:   

• In a first-of-its-kind clinical trial, Feinstein Institutes researchers successfully implanted microchips in the brain of a man living with paralysis to relink his brain to his body and spinal cord, helping him regain movement and sensation. The groundbreaking innovation was honored as one of the best inventions of 2024 by TIME magazine. Philanthropy was a driving force in the recruitment of principal investigator Chad Bouton.  
• The fully donor-funded Advancing Women in Science and Medicine program has awarded more than $5 million since 2010 to support the work of women scientists, most recently in areas such as artificial intelligence learning, breast cancer research and hearing loss prevention. 
• In 2024, the Institute of Translational Research became the sixth and newest of the Feinstein Institutes and is aimed at accelerating the “bench-to-bedside” approach.

“Our education enterprise, research enterprise and, importantly, our clinical enterprise have all grown significantly,” says Dr. Battinelli. “And the quality and stature of the talent we attract — from clinicians to surgeons to researchers to department heads and chairs — has exponentially increased, largely because of the strength of our philanthropic support.” 

Through the Outpacing the Impossible campaign, we have doubled our number of endowed chairs and professorships, recruiting the best experts and leaders across diverse fields, from cancer, cardiology and pediatrics to neurology, surgery and urology. And our donors have also funded new and unique endowments in nursing, humanism and health outcomes, further exemplifying Northwell’s distinction and timely approach to addressing current issues.   

Endowment support has accompanied transformative donor gifts that have raised Northwell’s presence and expanded our impact on patient care, including:   

• The creation of the R.J. Zuckerberg Cancer Hospital at Long Island Jewish Medical Center and the R.J. Zuckerberg Cancer Center, the first cancer hospital and cancer campus on Long Island. The gift also established an endowed chair in cancer research.  
• The expansion of care in Manhattan through the new Victoria and Lloyd Goldman Health Care Pavilion, which is expected to open in 2026. The gift, the largest single gift in Northwell’s history, includes the Victoria and Lloyd Goldman Professorship, which, once filled, will support medical education and research.  
• A commitment to care for the unique health needs of women through the customized clinical programs, research and community education efforts of the Katz Institute for Women’s Health, endowed by Iris and Saul Katz. The Katzes also funded a professor in women’s health research to address gender disparities in health care. 

“Every gift to build endowment allows us to uphold our commitment to raise health across our communities while propelling Northwell’s ascent as an academic health system,” adds Brian Lally.

During Northwell’s sixth annual Celebration of Excellence event in October 2024, we recognized the newest class of endowed professors and chairs, bringing together the benefactors,  
physician-scientists and clinical experts who are changing health care through excellence in academic medicine. The 30 positions endowed during the campaign carry significant prestige in the scientific, academic and medical fields and are a powerful reminder of Northwell’s ability to attract elite talent. “We’re so proud that our communities support the strategic direction of Northwell and that they recognize and stand behind the vision for our health system,” says Margaret Crotty, chair of Northwell’s board of trustees and an endowment donor.  

Beyond what’s possible today, endowed support will continue to fuel bold and radical approaches in our pursuit to ambitiously reimagine new standards for academic medicine.