Weekend of events, March 30-31, marks Human Ecology centennial

By Susan Lang

In the vanguard of higher education for the past 100 years, the College of Human Ecology at Cornell will celebrate its centennial with a feast of lectures, panel discussions, exhibits and more at its Centennial Celebration Weekend on campus, Friday and Saturday, March 30 and 31.

While valuing its past as an early and major gateway for women into public education in the late l9th and early 20th centuries, giving women entry into careers in academia, business, public education, government and health care, the College of Human Ecology also will look to the future. Students in the college currently study subjects such as genomics, ergonomics, policy analysis, design, textile chemistry, health, life course studies and human development, launching their careers and becoming the pioneers, reformers and scientists of tomorrow.

The weekend's events are open to the public, but registration is required.

The celebration includes lectures and presentations from numerous Cornell faculty members as well as guest speakers. It begins at 1 p.m. March 30, in the auditorium of Martha Van Rensselaer Hall (MVR). Highlights include:

• "In Search of the Healthy Home: Home Economists and the Making of the Modern American Household," a presentation by Nancy Tomes, professor at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, 1:30 p.m. March 30, MVR auditorium.

• "Human Ecology -- The Next Century," a lecture by Patsy Brannon, dean of the College of Human Ecology, at 2:30 p.m. March 30, MVR auditorium.

• "Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, Who's the Fairest of Them All?" remarks by Francille M. Firebaugh, dean emerita of the College of Human Ecology and Cornell director of special projects, Office of the President and Provost, 6:30 p.m. March 30, in Trillium, Kennedy Hall.

• "America and Social Justice: The Medical Perspective," a presentation by Henry Foster, M.D., professor emeritus and former dean of Meharry Medical College, and clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Vanderbilt University, 8-9:30 p.m. March 30, Call Auditorium, Kennedy Hall.

• "Healthy Children, Families and Communities: How Research Informs Policy," a panel discussion with Karen Davis, president, The Commonwealth Fund; Dana Friedman, a senior adviser at Bright Horizons Family Solutions; and Aletha C. Huston, professor at the University of Texas at Austin, at 9:15 a.m. March 31, Uris Hall Auditorium.

• "The Ecology of Technology," a lecture by John Picard, president, Environmental Enterprises, at 1:30 p.m. March 31, Statler Conference Center Amphitheater.

Concurrent workshops also are slated for March 31 from 11:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.; the workshop titles include: "Shape of Design," "Ecology of Human Development: New Frontiers of Research," "Contemporary Approaches to 'Saving Steps': Cornell NutritionWorks," "Aging of the Baby Boom: Implications for Health Policy" and "Factors Affecting the Thermal Comfort of Clothing" by Elizabeth McCullough, professor at Kansas State University.

In addition to the presentations, a major historical exhibit, "From Domesticity to Modernity: What Was Home Economics?" which was researched and planned by undergraduate students in Professor Joan Jacobs Brumberg's course HD 455, will open with a reception at 4:15 p.m. Friday at Kroch Library. Two exhibits on clothing will be discussed on March 31: "Common Threads: Dress, Identity and Art in the Twentieth Century" by Professor Charlotte Jirousek from 3 to 4 p.m. and "Uncommon Threads: Contemporary Artists and Clothing" by Sean Ulmer, curator of paintings and sculpture at Cornell's Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, from 4 to 5 p.m. at the museum, with a reception at 5.

Attendees need to register for the weekend for a fee of $45; the fee includes a March 31 continental breakfast (from 8 to 9:15 a.m. in Uris Hall auditorium) and all lectures and receptions. Optional March 30 dinner and March 31 lunch are available at an additional fee. For further information, contact Gret Atkin at the College of Human Ecology, gla2@cornell.edu.