Education is important, and here at the Downtown Middletown Improvement District, we take pride in the strides Middletown is making within the Education Sector. Middletown Thrall Library has been empowering, enlightening, and enriching our community for over 100 years, and we are fortunate to have this institution right in the center of our downtown.

Close to our area, is the Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine, which opened its doors in July of 2014. It's housed in the former Horton Hospital building, which underwent a $25 million renovation to become a high-tech medical school—complete with 85 dorm rooms, a state-of-the-art holographic and plastination lab, and their medical library. They also have the support and clinical training facilities on-site, where students can begin applying and honing their practical skills.

Not to be outdone, SUNY Orange Community College has finished its new Center for Science and Engineering. The new four-story, 100,000 Square Foot building will be home to the College’s Science, Engineering and Architecture programs, with state of the art teaching and learning environments. The Building is set to hold classrooms, science laboratories, computer and study labs, faculty offices, and lecture and meeting spaces.

And our Education options include Fei Tian College at the former Psychiatric Center. Fei Tian College, a bilingual (English/Chinese) institution of higher learning committed to the preservation, development, and propagation of traditional arts and cultures. The College prepares its students to meet the professional and moral challenges of a dynamic world in the 21st century. Graduates will also have the skills to bridge the cultural gap between East and West.

Being a stone’s throw away from our downtown area, we are fortunate to continuously work with these learning institutions as they are an asset to our downtown community.