Global Health Nexus, Spring 2000
Leonard I. Bluestone, '40, Bequeaths a Gift of $1.8 Million to NYU Dentistry
New Center for Clinical Research Will be Named in Dr. Bluestone's Honor
The NYU College of Dentistry has received a bequest of $1.8 million from the estate of Dr. Leonard I. Bluestone, Class of 1940. In recognition of this magnificent gift, NYU Dentistry will name a major new facility, scheduled to begin construction in June, the Leonard I. Bluestone Center for Clinical Research.
The new facility will be the centerpiece of NYU Dentistry's plan to become a research-intensive institution by building on its enormous, diverse patient base. A particular focus of the Bluestone Center will be on postgraduate research training in oral medicine and oral surgery (especially implant surgery), bone growth enhancement, and oral pharmacotherapy.
"Dr. Bluestone's gift will help sustain a vital pillar of NYU Dentistry's future," said Dean Alfano. "In addition to the fact that a large part of the center's research portfolio will be in the area of oral medicine, the Leonard I. Bluestone Center for Clinical Research will engage postgraduate students in education and research through collaboration with our postgraduate clinical education programs in oral and maxillofacial surgery, endodontics, periodontics, prosthodontics, implant dentistry, and orthodontics, as well as our M.S. degree programs in oral biology, biomaterials, and clinical research," added Dean Alfano.
The Bluestone Center is designed to be both a scholarly draw for the nation's top postgraduate students and an ideal environment for conducting clinical trials of new therapies before they are brought to market.
"It is extremely gratifying to know that Leonard Bluestone honored his experiences at the College of Dentistry throughout his entire life," said Dean Alfano, "and made provision to ensure the advancement on a continuing basis of the excellent NYU dental education that served him so well."
Dean Alfano also paid tribute to Dr. Bluestone's brother and executor of his estate, Dr. Seymour S. Bluestone, a graduate of the NYU School of Medicine. "Dr. Seymour Bluestone has done an extraordinarily fine job of guiding Leonard's bequest to assure the fulfillment of its intent. We are grateful for his friendship and look forward to his input as we build the Leonard I. Bluestone Center for Clinical Research."