Upstate Medical University, the region’s largest employer, has been named a finalist for the Business of the Year for Community Involvement award by CenterState CEO, a business group that provides business development assistance to nearly 2,000 businesses throughout Central and Northern New York.

Other finalists in the Community Involvement category are AmeriCU Credit Union and Equitable. Winners will be announced at the annual meeting of CenterState CEO April 23 at the Oncenter Nicholas J. Pirro Convention Center.

Community involvement is a key focus of Upstate’s far-reaching mission of saving lives, finding cures and treatments for disease, and educating the future’s health care workforce.

"On behalf of Upstate Medical University and our more than 12,000 dedicated employees and students, we are deeply honored to be selected as a finalist for the Business of the Year—Community Involvement award by CenterState CEO,” said Upstate President Mantosh Dewan, MD. “This recognition reflects our ongoing commitment to improving the health and well-being of our community. We are grateful for CenterstateCEO's support and the opportunity to work alongside other outstanding organizations to address the critical issues facing Central and New York."

Throughout the year, Upstate has been actively engaged in numerous community initiatives aimed at addressing health disparities, educating schoolchildren about health care careers, hosting lectures and programs about health issues and supporting local agencies through its Team Upstate to address community issues, from hunger to the homeless, veterans and runaway youth. Through Team Upstate, the university mobilizes a workforce and student body of more than 12,000 individuals to support such agencies as Francis House, Chadwick Shelter, In My Father’s Kitchen, Housecalls for the Homeless, the Food Bank of CNY, Rescue Mission and dozens of others.

With its fundraising alone, Upstate provides hundreds of thousands of dollars from its campus employees who give annually to benefit such charities as the American Heart Association through the Heart Walk, and the United Way of Central New York.

Through a network of programs, like She Matters (breast cancer awareness) and We Matter (colon cancer screenings), Upstate reaches thousands of individuals with important health information and valuable, life-saving screenings. The Upstate Mobile Mammography Van crisscrosses Central New York throughout the year to provide much-needed breast cancer screenings to women in many rural parts of the state.

Other examples of Upstate’s vast community connection include the U Matter Program, focused on mentoring under-represented youth to pursue healthcare education and careers, addressing workforce shortages; Walk with a Doc, a new health initiative promoting walking for fitness, paired with talks by Upstate clinicians; HealthLink and Oasis Programs, that provide thousands of people with health education through seminars, podcasts, newsletters, and fitness classes for older adults.

Last fall, Upstate launched a new mental health initiative with the Syracuse City School District to provide school-based mental health services to students while developing a sustainable pipeline of credentialed mental health clinicians aimed at supporting the growing demand for services.

These initiatives reflect Upstate’s strong commitment to community service, health education, and improving the quality of life for residents in Central New York.

CenterState CEO honored Upstate with this same award in 2018.

Caption: Upstate President Mantosh Dewan, MD, announces a partnership with the Syracuse City School District to provide school-based mental health services to students (Dec. 2024).