Rockefeller University, philanthropic organization in New York City, founded 1901 as the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research by John D. Rockefeller for furthering medical science and its allied subjects and to make knowledge of these subjects available to the public. Many millions of dollars allocated to the institute by its founder and members of his family enabled it to develop into one of the principal research organizations in the United States. Its first laboratory was opened in 1904; its hospital, established for the study of human diseases, opened in 1910. Two main departments were also organized—the departments of animal pathology (1914) and plant pathology (1931). The institute later added programs in the behavioral sciences, mathematics, physics, and philosophy. In 1954 the institute, becoming part of the Univ. of the State of New York, took on the status of a graduate university with authority to grant advanced degrees. In 1958 it became the Rockefeller Institute, and in 1965 its present name was adopted. Research projects in the biological and biomedical sciences are continually under way, including a program of advanced study in collaboration with the medical school of Cornell. The university publishes several journals as well as conference reports and monographs.
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