The Watson School of Biological Sciences
As described above, another long-standing initiative came to fruition in 1998 when the New York State Board of Regents voted in November to approve accreditation of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory as a Ph.D.-granting institution. The Laboratory is now in the process of raising funds to endow the school.
In the initial application for accreditation, the school was named the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory School of Biological Sciences. In January, the state approved the new name for the graduate school at Cold Spring Harbor: The Watson School of Biological Sciences, named for the Laboratory's long-time Director and now President James D. Watson.
To supplement housing for Watson School students, the Laboratory recently purchased a grand old house on land adjacent to Laboratory property on Route 25A, facing the inner harbor. The house was constructed in the 1700s, and it once served as the general store and post office for Cold Spring Harbor. The house was also home to many generations of the illustrious Long Island Jones family, including Jones descendant and former CSHL Trustee Townsend Knight. The building, located at 222 Main Street in Cold Spring Harbor, was recently named the Knight House in honor of Townie and will serve as housing for graduate students attending the Watson School of Biological Sciences. But due to its considerably run-down condition, the house will first undergo considerable restoration.