College of Human Ecology at Cornell

College of Human Ecology at Cornell Cornell Human Ecology champions human health in every dimension, at every scale

The essential mission of the College of Human Ecology is to improve lives by understanding and impacting the multilayered influences on human health and well-being. From the food we eat; the clothing we wear; the buildings we inhabit; the families, neighborhoods, and communities in which we exist; and the policies that affect our lives, these layers of influence are shaped by humans, and they shape us, in complex ways. Our academic majors are firmly grounded in the social, natural & physical sciences, and design to create dynamic, interdisciplinary fields of study. This allows our students to explore their interests in a broader context and to understand and analyze issues from multiple perspectives. UNDERGRADUATE MAJORS:
Design and Environmental Analysis
Fiber Science
Fashion Design Management
Human Biology, Health, and Society
Human Development
Nutritional Sciences
Global and Public Health Sciences

What can human milk teach us about supporting breastfeeding families and giving infants the healthiest possible start? 🥛...
09/25/2026

What can human milk teach us about supporting breastfeeding families and giving infants the healthiest possible start? 🥛🔬

In the Golan Lab, assistant professor Yarden Golan and a team of undergraduate and graduate researchers in the Division of Nutritional Sciences are working to answer that question from the molecular level to clinical care.

The lab studies how human milk is produced, the bioactive components it contains and how they may influence infant health, while also investigating breastfeeding challenges such as low milk production. By combining clinical research with genomics, cell biology and other approaches, the team aims to translate discoveries in the lab into better care and support for families.

For undergraduate researcher Wesley Mui ’27, a human biology, health and society major, that means taking an active role in the research process. His work includes studying mRNAs in milk fat globules and their potential role in infant development, designing and running experiments, and researching an inflammatory condition associated with poor infant growth outcomes.

“As an undergraduate, it can be easy to think that you won't be able to make a meaningful contribution to the research, but through this experience, I realized that every researcher starts somewhere, and taking the initiative to lead an individual project can be a great way to become more involved and independent as a researcher,” Mui said.

Together, students and researchers in the Golan Lab are working across disciplines and stages of study toward a shared goal: advancing our understanding of human milk and translating that knowledge into better outcomes for parents and infants.

Photo Credit: Galib Braschler

From research to impact in Washington, D.C. Across two weeks in September, the Cornell Joan Klein Jacobs Center for Pre...
09/24/2026

From research to impact in Washington, D.C.

Across two weeks in September, the Cornell Joan Klein Jacobs Center for Precision Nutrition and Health brought its expertise to Washington, D.C., as part of its broader advocacy and “last mile” work, helping connect research in nutrition and health with the people, organizations and institutions working to put knowledge into action.

On Sept. 9–10, Saurabh Mehta, the Janet and Gordon Lankton Professor and founding director of the Jacobs Center, spoke on strengthening children’s microbiome as part of the 28th public meeting of the Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria (PACCARB) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The meeting focused on the national response to antimicrobial resistance, bringing together expertise across human health, agriculture, the microbiome and the environment.

The following week, the Jacobs Center partnered with the Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability to co-host a Capitol Hill panel exploring the intersection of Food is Medicine and sustainable agriculture.

The conversation brought together Dr. Andrew Bremer of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Dr. Sheila Fleischhacker of the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Evan Lutz, founder and CEO of Hungry Harvest, and Mehta, with Marian Flaxman, communications and advocacy lead for the Jacobs Center, moderating.

Panelists explored Food is Medicine from perspectives spanning nutrition, agriculture, sustainability, and program delivery, including opportunities to source from local, sustainable farms and incorporate precision nutrition into programs.

Together, the two D.C. engagements reflect a common goal for the Jacobs Center: connecting research with policy and practice to advance solutions that improve human and planetary health.

Kicking off fall with food, friends and the Human Ecology community🍂❤️Students, faculty and staff came together yesterda...
09/23/2026

Kicking off fall with food, friends and the Human Ecology community🍂❤️

Students, faculty and staff came together yesterday for our Human Ecology Community Picnic, sharing lunch, playing games and enjoying an afternoon of connection across the college.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by and helped us welcome the new season together. Here’s to more moments like these this fall!

Photo Credit: Galib Braschler

For the first time in over a decade, garments from fashion designer Ralph Rucci’s haute couture and made-to-order collec...
09/23/2026

For the first time in over a decade, garments from fashion designer Ralph Rucci’s haute couture and made-to-order collections have been brought together under one roof as part of the Cornell Fashion + Textile Collection (CF+TC) at College of Human Ecology at Cornell.

Documentary materials, including thousands of original sketches, patterns and swatches, are housed by the Kheel Center at Cornell University Library. The collection includes 125 cubic feet of paper materials: approximately 8,000 sketches, 3,000 patterns, thousands of fabric swatches and hundreds of photographs. The archive is accessible to students, researchers and the public, ensuring Rucci’s legacy lives on and inspires future generations of designers.

“One can see the evolution of ideas from Rucci’s sketches with handwritten notes appended with feathers, fabrics and color schemes in the Kheel Center to the final garments in Cornell’s Fashion and Textile Collection,” said Steven Calco, head of the Kheel Center. “Studying the design from inception to ex*****on will be invaluable for students learning these fashion design skills at Cornell and the profession at large. Preserving these records ensures students and future researchers can study the relationship between design, craft, labor and production in the fashion and textile industries.”

Read more about the Ralph Rucci collection and its new home at Cornell: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/09/now-cornell-legendary-designers-collection-inspires-next-generation

Join us tomorrow for the Human Ecology Community Picnic! 🍽️📅 Tuesday, Sept. 22⏰ Noon–2:30 p.m.📍 HEB Commons☀️🌧️ Rain or ...
09/21/2026

Join us tomorrow for the Human Ecology Community Picnic! 🍽️

📅 Tuesday, Sept. 22
⏰ Noon–2:30 p.m.
📍 HEB Commons
☀️🌧️ Rain or shine!

Students, faculty and staff are invited to stop by, share a meal and connect with others from across the Human Ecology community.

Grab some lunch, bring a friend and spend some time with us. We hope to see you there!

A week to unplug, recharge and connect! 🌸🧶🐶This week, we celebrated Cornell Human Ecology Unplugged with activities acro...
09/18/2026

A week to unplug, recharge and connect! 🌸🧶🐶

This week, we celebrated Cornell Human Ecology Unplugged with activities across the college designed to give our community a chance to take a break, have some fun and connect with one another.

From building with LEGO, flower arranging and knitting to sweet treats, games, visits with Bennie, professor Marianella Casasola’s puppy, and more, there were plenty of ways to step away from the screen and spend some time together.

And after more than 1,000 votes in our weeklong bracket challenges, the results are in! 🏆

Favorite Late Night Snack: Fries 🍟
Favorite building on campus: Martha Van Rensselaer Hall — our own! ❤️

A special thank you to Andrea Poag, assistant dean for student experience, for her leadership in bringing this week of activities to life, and to everyone who joined us for a week of fun, creativity and community.

Until next time, stay unplugged! ✨

Photo Credit: Galib Braschler

Meet the Class of 2030! 🎉 From healthcare and human development to fiber science and sustainable fashion, our newest stu...
09/17/2026

Meet the Class of 2030! 🎉 From healthcare and human development to fiber science and sustainable fashion, our newest students are bringing big ideas and aspirations to Human Ecology.

We asked five members from the Class of 2030 what brought them to CHE, what they hope to accomplish and how they’re finding their fit at the home of the human experience: https://human.cornell.edu/news-profiles/meet-class-2030

Photo Credit: Galib Braschler

America is aging, but are our systems prepared to care for an older population?In a new Research Matters episode, Jenna ...
09/16/2026

America is aging, but are our systems prepared to care for an older population?

In a new Research Matters episode, Jenna Wells, assistant professor in the Department of Psychology joins Adriana Reyes, assistant professor in the Brooks School of Public Policy, to examine the realities of eldercare in the U.S, including who provides care, who pays for it and what happens when families and support systems are stretched thin.

Drawing on their research, Wells and Reyes explore the growing challenges surrounding caregiving and what an aging population means for families across the country.

🎧 Listen to the full conversation to hear their research-backed perspective on one of the most consequential issues facing families today: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nHFN38CKUw

Inside a long-unopened garment bag was a fashion time capsule. ✨As Cornell fashion design students carefully lifted out ...
09/14/2026

Inside a long-unopened garment bag was a fashion time capsule. ✨

As Cornell fashion design students carefully lifted out an intricate bolero, porcupine quills tinkled, revealing one of nearly 500 garments by legendary American designer Ralph Rucci that now have a new home at Cornell.

For the first time in more than a decade, pieces from Rucci’s acclaimed haute couture and ready-to-wear collections have been brought together under one roof in the Cornell Fashion + Textile Collection (CF+TC), alongside thousands of his original sketches, patterns, swatches and other archival materials preserved by Cornell University Library’s Kheel Center.

“I remember feeling a combination of awe, responsibility and urgency, because I immediately wanted students to be able to see what I was seeing – to understand that fashion can be this complex, this demanding and this moving,” said Denise Nicole Green, director of the CF+TC and Lau Family Associate Professor in Fiber Science and Apparel Design.

For students, the collection offers a rare opportunity to study couture from the inside out, examining everything from hidden seams, intricate handwork and structural construction to Rucci’s unexpected use of materials including porcupine quills, horsehair, feathers, gemstones and glass beads. Thousands of sketches, patterns and fabric swatches preserved alongside the garments also allow students to trace his designs from initial idea to finished piece.

“Getting to experience Ralph Rucci’s work up close reminded me of the endless possibilities to innovate in the field of fashion,” said Tabitha Mueller-Schrader ’26.

Three Rucci garments are currently on view in “Approaching America: Myth, Dress, and Belonging” through Sept. 16 in the Gold Gallery in Martha Van Rensselaer Hall.

Looking ahead to spring 2027, “Ralph Rucci: Taking Dictation,” a retrospective of Rucci’s work, will open at the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art.

Read the full story at https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/09/now-cornell-legendary-designers-collection-inspires-next-generation

Unplug, unwind and take a break from your screens this week! 🔌Human Ecology Unplugged is happening all week with activit...
09/14/2026

Unplug, unwind and take a break from your screens this week! 🔌

Human Ecology Unplugged is happening all week with activities designed to help the CHE community step away from technology, connect with one another and have a little fun.

- Monday: Spin the prize wheel from 1–2 p.m. or join a LEGO Build Challenge from 2–4 p.m.

- Tuesday: Make a flower arrangement from 1:30–3:30 p.m., then take a 4:30 p.m. walk with Associate Dean Marianella Casasola and her pup, Bennie. 🐶

- Wednesday: Learn to knit from 2–3 p.m., followed by a CHE Transfer Meet Up from 5–6 p.m. in MVR 1153.

- Thursday: Grab a sweet treat from the Candy Bar from 12:30–2 p.m. or learn to knit from 2–3 p.m.

No experience needed and all supplies are provided! Stop by the Unplugged table in the HEB Commons throughout the week for additional activities.

Human Ecology Unplugged is part of the Cornell Unplugged Initiative. Find the full schedule on the Human Ecology website: https://human.cornell.edu/events/human-ecology-unplugged

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Martha Van Rensselaer Hall, Cornell University
Ithaca, NY
14853

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