The June 2025 institute will have in-person, hybrid, and fully virtual sessions, allowing those in Ithaca as well as scholars external to Cornell who are affiliated with the programs and societies listed on the Registration page to attend as well.

Day 1 Agenda

Tuesday, June 17, 2025

Time: 12:00pm – 2:00pm ET
Modality: Hybrid
Location: In-person events in G10 Biotechnology Building; Livestream for remote participants

12:00pm-12:30pm ET

Registration and Networking Lunch for In-Person Participants

12:30pm-2:00pm ET

Keynote by Dr. Wayne Scales: Fostering Strategic University Partnerships for Excellence and Innovation

• Wayne A. Scales, Ph.D. ’88, Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs and J. Byron Maupin Professor of Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Keynote information

Short Break

3:00pm-4:30pm ET

Power Mentoring Discussion with Dr. Wayne Scales

An in-person small-group discussion with a distinguished Cornell alumnus to gain insights into what it is like to be a faculty member and administrator. Separate registration is required for this event aimed at doctoral students and postdoctoral scholars. Light refreshments will be served.

Day 2 Agenda

Wednesday, June 18, 2025

Time: 12:30 – 4:45pm ET
Modality: Online
Location: Zoom

12:30-1:45pm ET

Panel Discussion: Exploring Your Institutional Fit

Exploring Careers at Community Colleges, Liberal Arts Colleges and Master’s Granting Institutions, and Public and Private Research Universities

• Panelists
  • Wesley Francillon, Associate Professor and Academic Chair, Engineering, Cybersecurity and Industrial Technology at Suffolk County Community College
  • Cody Gonzalez, Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of Texas at San Antonio
  • Caitlin Kane, Ph.D. ’22, Assistant Professor of Theatre History, Kent State University
  • Don Sawyer III, Vice President for Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging and Associate Professor of Sociology, Fairfield University
  • Ranalda Tsosie (Diné), Director of Environmental Science Program and
    Assistant Professor Earth & Environmental Science, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology

Panelist 1 details

Short Break

2:00pm – 3:15pm ET

Fireside Chat: Navigating a Rapidly Changing Academy as an Early Career Faculty Member

• Discussants:
  • Avery August, Deputy Provost and Professor of Immunology, Cornell University
  • Sherilynn Black, Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Advancement and Assistant Professor of the Practice of Medical Education, Duke University 
  • Dean Lacey, Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs and Professor of Government, Dartmouth University 

Discussant details

Short Break

3:30pm – 4:45pm ET

Concurrent Panels by Discipline: Establishing Your Scholarship and Research Agenda as a New Faculty Member

• Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Panel
  • Ryan Buyco, Ph.D. ’19, Assistant Professor of Ethnic Studies, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo
  • Jenny Mann, Professor of English, New York University
  • Tamara Mose, Professor of Sociology, Brooklyn College
  • Christopher Seiji Berardino, Ph.D. ’21, Assistant Professor of English, University of California, Riverside
  • Dylan Stevenson (Prairie Band Potawatomi), Ph.D. ’23, Assistant Professor of Urban Design and Planning, University of Washington

Panelist 2a details

• Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Panel
  • Christian Aponte-Rivera, Ph.D. ’17, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Stony Brook University
  • Julia Finkelstein, Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Nutrition, Cornell University
  • Swanne Gordon, Assistant Professor of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University
  • Eugene Law, Ph.D. ’21, Assistant Professor of Weed Ecology, The Ohio State University
  • Sarah Lower, Associate Professor of Biology, Bucknell University

Panelist 2b details