Cornell Commitment students showcase summer experiences

Dejah Powell
Lindsay France/Cornell Marketing Group
Cornell Commitment scholar Dejah Powell '18 shares her research and service experience at the program's first showcase Sept. 28.

Twenty student presenters highlighted their summer work and volunteer experiences – ranging from human rights and social justice to the environment and sustainability – at the first Cornell Commitment showcase, held Sept. 28 in the Biotechnology Building.

The Cornell Commitment encompasses The Cornell Tradition, the Hunter R. Rawlings III Cornell Presidential Research Scholars and the Meinig Family Cornell National Scholars. Roughly 900 undergraduate students from all seven colleges are selected and participate in the program, most beginning in their first year.

“Students are selected for membership into these programs based on their commitment to work and service, leadership and learning, and inquiry and discovery," said Kristine M. DeLuca, Cornell Commitment director. "Along with specific programmatic benefits throughout their Cornell careers, they have access to scholarship money and support accounts that offset the cost associated with going out in the world and making a difference.” 

The event began with audience members mingling with students, who presented posters detailing their summer work followed by a Q&A with upperclassmen panelists, each of whom used funding from Cornell Commitment to fund their summer experiences.

Presenter Emma Ianni ’17 spent the summer analyzing religious events in Italy, using skills and resources she gained as a Rawlings scholar. “I came to Cornell thinking I wanted to do research, but it’s really hard [to find support or funding] doing research in humanities, so the program is great because it’s open to any field of study,” Ianni said.

First-year students in the three programs were required to attend, to gain a better understanding of how they can use funding for their own endeavors and to begin thinking about potential research, work and service learning experiences to pursue.

Anika Exum ’18 worked in corporate communications for the Japanese division of the KPMG accounting firm in New York City. “With Meinig,” she said, “you have a lot of options because you’re able to get that funding, which has helped me learn what I don’t want to do and what I do want to do.”

Cornell Commitment students are encouraged to be proactive and look for their own research, work and service opportunities – with support and guidance from program staff, upperclass students and other mentors . The programs also keep students accountable through frequent meetings, events and deadlines.

Lyndsey Williams ‘18, a Cornell Tradition fellow, worked in an elephant nature park in Thailand for the summer.

“I didn't have the money to be able to go as far away as I did, so being able to [get funding] really impacted my life because there’s no way I could have had this experience in the United States,” Williams said.

Amanda Kabonero ’20 is a writer intern for the Cornell Chronicle.

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