When Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) was founded in 1947, it was intended to be a multipurpose research laboratory housing large, state-of-the-art facilities and hosting many scientific users. By 1998 Stony Brook became a partner in managing the Laboratory for the Department of Energy, it had already become the largest institutional scientific user of BNL. The Office of the VPBA has acted to encourage cooperative initiatives between the two institutions that will benefit the missions of both institutions.

Recent initiatives include the appropriation of $26 million in the State Legislature for a new supercomputer and the creation of Brookhaven Professorships at Stony Brook. BNL scientists who hold the title of Brookhaven Professor will teach courses and serve on departmental committees but at a reduced level of effort than for university-paid faculty. Brookhaven Professors might supervise several graduate students, teach one or two graduate or undergraduate courses every three years, participate in department committee activities, have a departmental office, and departmental laboratory space if needed. Graduate research work might be carried out primarily at research facilities at BNL, at SBU, or at both places. At the same time the Brookhaven Professor would engage in his/her normal BNL responsibilities.

Starting in 1999 a Seed Grant program was started to encourage further USB-BNL initiatives. The Office of the VPBA administers the program. This annual program has attracted the submission of 257 proposals in the last 11 years, of which 61 have received funding. The eleventh round of this program will be announced in January of 2010, with a proposal deadline of March 13, 2009. Information about this program, along with brief summaries of previously funded proposals are located here.