ITMO: Russian Minister of Science and Higher Education Named as Chair of ITMO Highpark Board of Directors
The implementation and funding of ITMO Highpark, a new campus currently under construction in the satellite city Yuzhny south of St. Petersburg, will now be carried out within the framework of the programs of the Russian Ministry of Science and Higher Education; the government body’s head, Minister Valery Falkov, has been chosen as the chair of the company’s board of directors. Maxut Shadayev, who heads the Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media, which was previously tasked with overseeing the project, will stay on as a member of the board.
According to Andrey Nazarov, the passing of the reins to the Ministry of Science and Higher Education is a logical continuation of the development strategy of ITMO University’s upcoming science, education, and innovation center.
“The development of university campuses is a crucial element of today’s economic agenda. While our initial focus was on the training of staff for the IT sector, it will now be expanded further with new tasks, which we will tackle together with the Ministry of Science and Higher Education,” comments Andrey Nazarov.
“We’re grateful to the Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media for the support they’ve provided to ITMO Highpark over the years. Building such a project from the ground up is a massive effort. Now, we join forces with the Ministry of Science and Higher Education as we enter a new, no less difficult and important, stage of the project – the first phase of construction and the planning of subsequent ones. Everyone at the university awaits the day ITMO Highpark opens its doors,” says Vladimir Vasilyev, the Rector of ITMO University.
ITMO Highpark is a science, education, and innovation center under the aegis of ITMO University, currently under construction in the south of St. Petersburg. The complex will consist of a campus for Master’s and PhD students, a tech valley, and a business park. Its total area will measure 100 hectares, of which 140,000 sq.m. will be taken up by science and innovation infrastructure and another 100,000 sq.m. – by dormitories, academic buildings, student infrastructure, and research centers. The first phase, which includes the main academic building, dormitories, and a student club, is set to be completed in late 2024.
In 2021, the Russian Government allocated 3 billion rubles and the Government of St. Petersburg allocated 2 billion rubles towards the construction of ITMO Highpark. It is worth adding that work is already being done on the implementation of ITMO Highpark’s engineering infrastructure. The first stage of construction of the water supply and disposal infrastructure is by the end of 2022.