Meet Wendy

At Cornell, Wendy seeks out opportunities where she can pursue her hobbies and interests. Between the Einhorn Center for Community Engagement and the School of Industrial and Labor Relations, Wendy finds herself exploring ways to engage with the community and labor dynamics in the green-energy transition.

What clubs/activities are you involved with on campus?

I am part of the Community Partnership Funding Board, Cornell University Sustainable Design, and Social Enterprise at Cornell. I'm also a Cornell Tradition Fellow.

What is your favorite thing about Cornell?

My favorite thing about Cornell is the people. There will always be someone who will be your loudest friend, cheerleader, or advocate.

Why is the School of Industrial and Labor Relations a great fit for you?

ILRie here! The School of Industrial and Labor Relations is a great fit for me because I get to study people at work. As someone whose interests are constantly growing, but at the core remains my passion for understanding the human dimensions, the ILR School equips me with the frameworks and tools to address problems concerning how people work across industries. Lastly, the ILR School has a supportive transfer student community.

What is your academic passion?

My academic passion is exploring people management/strategy and, more recently, labor dynamics in the green-energy transition. I had assumed the latter would be difficult to engage with on campus, but I was pleased to learn about all the existing and continuing work at Cornell, such as with the ILR School’s Climate Jobs Institute and Cornell University Sustainable Design.

What are your go-to campus resources? How did you discover them?

My go-to campus resource is the David M. Einhorn Center for Community Engagement, located in 300 Kennedy Hall. The Einhorn Center has allowed me to get involved with the Cornell campus and the broader Ithaca communities.

I discovered the Einhorn Center by applying to one of the student-run programs of the David M. Einhorn Center for Community Engagement. During my first semester at Cornell, I applied to the Community Partnership Funding Board (CPFB), Cornell’s only student-run grant board for student-initiated projects.

Since the 1991–1992 academic year, CPFB has been dedicated to supporting and funding Cornell undergraduates who initiate grassroots, social justice, and/or community action projects in partnership with a student organization, community agency, faculty/staff, and/or alumni.

I applied to CPFB to familiarize myself with Cornell and Ithaca and, more importantly, work with and learn from Cornell undergraduates and community partners. I have been very fortunate that this also meant being more exposed to and engaged with the Einhorn Center.

What is one piece of advice or something you wish you knew when you were applying?

I wish I'd known that students and alumni want to share their Cornell experiences. Looking back, I would have applied to Cornell sooner had I learned earlier on about the communities I could be a part of by reaching out to and engaging with Cornellians.