The Long Island Economic and Social Policy Institute at Dowling College was founded to provide a forum for discussion and to be a mechanism to formulate practical solutions for a variety of economic and social issues facing the Nation's first suburb.

Research comparing and quantifying differences between contemporary and past suburban communities is a primary focus of the Institute, and this provides a curriculum for an interdisciplinary course of study on suburbia, sociology, culture, race and economics, and contribute subject matter for papers, publications and symposiums.

The Long Island Economic and Social Policy Institute provides thoughtful commentary and cutting edge enlightened thinking on the pressing social and economic issues of the day. Dowling College students benefit from initiatives of the Institute, which provide crucial analysis of Long Island communities that are integrated into current course curriculum. By working with the Townsend School of Business, the Institute provides students with insights into community revitalization and business development strategies which they can use in their local communities, thus providing community development and economic leadership for decades to come.

The LIESP hosts symposiums and workshops on various issues. The Institute also conducts research and presents testimony and analytical information at national, state and county legislative hearings.

Economist and author Martin R. Cantor, CPA, M.A., serves as the Institute's director.