Partnership with Lewyt Trust will also Provide Scholarships, Staff Training Centers at Shelters, and Host Community Events
Brookville, NY. February 5, 2025 – Long Island University today announced that its Veterinary Medicine College will bear the name of renowned Long Island philanthropists, animal rights advocates and founders of one of the world’s largest shelter, North Shore Animal League Alex and Elisabeth Lewyt. It will be known as The Lewyt College of Veterinary Medicine, under a $20.5 million agreement with the Lewyt Trust.
The Lewyt Trust will provide annual scholarships for selected students enrolled in the Lewyt College of Veterinary Medicine, beginning August, 2025.
The agreement will also allow the University to provide staffing and support at animal shelters to be known as Lewyt Training Centers and perform a series of annual free community outreach programs where students will provide basic veterinary care, and distribute pet food and supplies to those in need.
“The Lewyt name is synonymous with humane and compassionate care for all animals, and through their Trust, Alex and Elisabeth’s philanthropy continues. Long Island University is honored to have their name on the College of Veterinary Medicine,” noted Dr. Kimberly R. Cline, President.
“With their strong devotion to Long Island, the Lewyts would be honored to have Long Island University’s College of Veterinary Medicine in their name,” says Wendy McColgan, who together with Thomas R. Amlicke serves as co-trustee of the Alex & Elisabeth Lewyt Charitable Trust.
The Lewyt College of Veterinary Medicine is the only such school in the New York Metropolitan area and one of only four in the Northeast, along with Cornell, Tufts, and the University of Pennsylvania. It began enrolling students in 2020, with its first class graduating in May, 2024. Long Island University has substantially invested in enhancing existing research facilities and constructing a 33,000 square-foot state-of-the-art Veterinary Medicine Learning Center including an Animal Simulation Suite where students can perform examinations, surgeries and medical imaging on virtual patients.
Alexander Lewyt (1908 – 1988) was a visionary, inventor, and entrepreneur who held many patents but was best known for the Lewyt vacuum cleaner, a compact machine with no dust bag designed to operate without distorting television and radio reception. Elisabeth “Babette” Lewyt championed organizations that followed a no-kill policy for stray and abandoned pets. Together, the Lewyts were instrumental in saving countless animals from euthanasia, through philanthropy and hands-on work. From 1958 until his death, Alex was president of the North Shore Animal League and was credited with restoring it to solvency and turning it into one of the largest animal shelters in the country. Mrs. Lewyt served as chairperson of the North Shore Animal League board until her death.
About Long Island University
Long Island University, founded in 1926, is a leading research and teaching university that continues to redefine higher education by providing high-quality academic instruction by world-class faculty, serving more than 16,000 students from its Long Island and Brooklyn campuses. Recognized by Forbes for its emphasis on experiential learning and by the Brookings Institution for its “value added” to student outcomes, the University is ranked in the top 7% of national research universities. LIU has a network of over 285,000 alumnus, including industry leaders and entrepreneurs around the globe. Visit www.liu.edu for more information.
