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CAU offers online classes with Cornell faculty for adults and youth this summer

Cornell’s Adult University invites alumni, their friends and family, and the general public to expand their minds this summer by taking live, online courses taught by Cornell faculty and graduate students.

These weeklong CAU classes, offered through the School of Continuing Education and Summer Sessions and eCornell, range from art to engineering and science and will run July 12 through August 6, 2021.

The summer program continues CAU’s success in offering online courses last summer and again this winter due to the pandemic. Traditionally, CAU hosts trips around the world and on-campus summer programming, all taught by Cornell faculty, for adults and youth.

“True to form, Cornell’s faculty and graduate students have generously supported CAU’s summer online learning initiatives by offering to teach a range of subjects to our avid learners, finding the experience to be both refreshing and rewarding,” said CAU’s director, Lora Gruber-Hine.

“Feedback from CAU students has encouraged instructors to maximize student interactions and incorporate diverse activities to keep learning engaging and fun.”

This summer’s weeklong online courses will feature synchronous lectures and discussions, small class sizes, one-on-one interactions with instructors and group learning sessions. Participants will earn a custom Cornell certificate upon successful completion of their course.

Adults may register in weeklong courses on architecture, Finger Lakes natural history, Italian film, Indonesia, ocean biodiversity, photography, poetry, and wine tasting. Each course features four hours of live, interactive content taught by Cornell faculty, three or more hours of asynchronous learning and access to curated resources.

Cornell physics professor Jim Alexander and his mother attended the Archipelago: Indonesia Past and Present course taught last winter (and again this summer) by Eric Tagliacozzo, the John Stambaugh Professor of History. Alexander said he was impressed by the quality of the instruction and the curriculum.

“Eric was an excellent teacher and covered a wide range of topics and history with evident deep expertise,” Alexander said. “He was completely open to questions and discussion, which helped make the class lively and engaged.”

With fingers crossed for in-person programming to be possible again soon, Alexander will lead his own CAU class on a physics education vacation to Switzerland and CERN in 2022.

Also on tap this summer are CAU programs for youth and teens ages 10–15. Students may register for weeklong courses in biomedical engineering, cryptography, spider science, bird identification, physics, cosmology, and veterinary science. These courses feature five hours of live, interactive content taught by a Cornell instructor along with access to educational resources and tailored materials.

Stamatios Taramas, a parent who signed his son up for the winter bioengineering course (offered again this summer with Jeremy Keys, a PhD candidate in biomedical engineering), said the class was excellent.

“Jeremy was awesome, both in the lectures and the recordings. He analyzed everything thoroughly, but left room for the student to engage in research on his own. My son found the class very interactive and engaging.”

Class size is limited to 20 participants for adults and 30 participants for youth and teens, so interested students are encouraged to register as soon as possible.

Registration closes in mid-June for most courses. For more information and instructions on how to register, visit the CAU website.

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Data policy program boosts high school students

This spring, more than 100 underserved high schoolers in New York, Florida and Michigan participated in an expanded online data policy and analysis program, in which they explored pressing policy issues such as income inequality, racial justice and climate change through economic and sociological lenses.

The program – developed by eCornell, the School of Continuing Education (SCE) and the nonprofit National Education Equity Lab (NEEL) – was led by Maria Fitzpatrick and Matthew Hall, both professors in the Department of Policy Analysis and Management, in the College of Human Ecology. In examining important issues – including education equity and COVID-19 – students sought to determine how big data is being used to address policy problems in the United States and across the globe.

Students had the opportunity to learn directly from Cornell faculty via virtual office hours, lab sessions and one-on-one facetime.

“Maria Fitzpatrick and Matthew Hall have been forces of nature in providing transformational opportunities to students who need it most,” said Leslie Cornfeld, NEEL’s founder and CEO.

During a closing ceremony May 26, Provost Michael I. Kotlikoff praised the high school scholars for their achievements, saying he was proud of Cornell’s leadership in this effort with the Equity Lab as it reflects Cornell’s commitment to equity, access and opportunity.

Fitzpatrick called the program “one of the best teaching experiences of my career.”

Last summer, eCornell and NEEL piloted a high school program with Donna Haeger, professor of practice in the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, based on Haeger’s popular on-campus spreadsheet modeling courses. To expand the collaboration, this spring eCornell and SCE worked with NEEL to offer a three-credit online undergraduate course, Big Data for Big Policy Problems (PAM 270).

Many of the 16 schools participating in the high school program signed on to provide supervising teachers, who coached and helped all students with time management. NEEL provided a Chromebook to any student without access to a laptop.

“Cornell University’s leadership is a national model for what selective universities can accomplish in the education justice space,” Cornfeld said.

“With this expansion, Cornell has powerfully demonstrated their commitment to racial and economic justice. They’re not just talking the talk. That commitment should make current and future students, as well as alumni, proud of their alma mater.”

One such future student is Melanie Lantigua, a high school student from the Bronx who successfully completed the course and will be attending Cornell this fall as a first-generation student.

“I hope Cornell continues to offer opportunities like this to scholars in underserved high schools across the nation,” Lantigua said during the ceremony. “We need opportunities like this to show colleges – and ourselves – what we can do.”

Jamie Bonan ’18 is a content marketing specialist at eCornell.

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Ansys ushers in a new era of online learning with Cornell Engineering

/ Key Highlights

Ansys is transforming engineering curricula through a partnership with Cornell University to develop simulation courses, supplementing online learning
Cornell’s SimCafe tutorials will now be accessible on the Ansys Innovation Courses platform
Ansys and Cornell University’s Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering are transforming online engineering curriculum with new simulation-based online courses. The collaboration satisfies the increased demand for remote learning and brings simulation software to the forefront of teaching.

As graduating engineers and young professionals face demanding positions and high expectations in the workplace, Cornell and Ansys are arming them with access to world-class simulation education. Through this collaboration with Cornell, Ansys lowers the barrier for simulation education and equips a new era of engineers to succeed within advanced engineering teams, who increasingly leverage simulation to solve complex engineering problems.

Faculty from Cornell’s College of Engineering will design and develop courses with eCornell, the university’s external education unit, while Ansys provides support for the inclusion of real-world application examples and detailed technical write-ups of problem formulations, engineering assumptions, simulation approaches and results interpretation. The courses’ flexible format enables participants to complete the curricula on their own timelines. Courses will be offered for both students and professionals seeking to bolster their skillsets. Additionally, Cornell has chosen the Ansys Innovation Courses platform to host their existing SimCafe tutorials. Cornell will work closely with Ansys to migrate all of their tutorials to the Innovation Courses learning structure, resulting in more than 50 new Cornell courses, adding to the more than 75 existing Ansys Innovation courses.

“Simulation is a disruptive technology that can be used to transform engineering curriculum at the university level,” said Rajesh Bhaskaran, Swanson director of engineering simulation at Cornell University’s Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. “As simulation becomes a standard feature of curriculum for teaching physics and applications, nearly every engineering graduate should be able to use simulation software effectively. Together with Ansys, we look forward to preparing engineers with the simulation skillset they need.”

“Through our continued collaboration with Cornell University, we are helping students and professionals engineer what’s ahead throughout every stage of their career,” said Prith Banerjee, chief technology officer at Ansys. “As simulation continues to revolutionize how engineering is done, the eCornell courses, supplemented by our Ansys Innovation Courses, will ensure that participants gain the experience needed to excel in the ever-changing industry.”

The Cornell courses are now open for registration. To learn more or to sign up, please visit https://ecornell.cornell.edu/certificates/engineering/fluid-dynamics-simulations-using-ansys/. Ansys Innovation Courses are available at https://courses.ansys.com/.

/ About Ansys

If you’ve ever seen a rocket launch, flown on an airplane, driven a car, used a computer, touched a mobile device, crossed a bridge or put on wearable technology, chances are you’ve used a product where Ansys software played a critical role in its creation. Ansys is the global leader in engineering simulation. Through our strategy of Pervasive Engineering Simulation, we help the world’s most innovative companies deliver radically better products to their customers. By offering the best and broadest portfolio of engineering simulation software, we help them solve the most complex design challenges and create products limited only by imagination. Founded in 1970, Ansys is headquartered south of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.A. Visit www.ansys.com for more information.

Ansys and any and all ANSYS, Inc. brand, product, service and feature names, logos and slogans are registered trademarks or trademarks of ANSYS, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States or other countries. All other brand, product, service and feature names or trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

ANSS–T

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Cornell launches online fluid dynamics simulation certificate

Cornell University is partnering with software company Ansys to create a new certificate program that allows engineers from across the world to master simulation of fluid dynamics.

The Fluid Dynamics Simulations Using Ansys Certificate program will be globally available through the eCornell online learning platform beginning July 7, and will offer a number of courses that teach students and professionals how to create and validate simulations, such as flows over a car body, cooling fan and airplane body.

While commercial software is becoming easier to use for non-experts, simulation is still complex and requires a deep understanding of mathematical models and physical principles. The new courses aim to bridge the gap between theory and real-world simulation applications, and offer a self-paced format that allows participants flexibility in going through the course content.

Ansys develops, markets and supports engineering simulation software used to predict how product designs will behave in real-world environments and has a long history with Cornell. John Swanson ’61, M.Eng. ’63, founder of Ansys, is a long-time supporter of the university. He endowed the Swanson Director of Engineering Simulation position in the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering—which is held by Senior Lecturer Rajesh Bhaskaran.

“Rajesh has been very effective in using online learning to provide practical simulation education to a broad audience within and outside Cornell,” said Swanson, who is the recipient of the 2021 Cornell Engineering Distinguished Alumni Award. “I am happy to see his impact expand further through the eCornell simulation courses.”

Simulation is increasingly being used in the workplace to solve complex engineering problems and is becoming an important aspect of an engineer’s skillset. Bhaskaran has helped introduce industry-standard simulation tools into Cornell courses covering fluid mechanics, heat transfer, solid mechanics, and numerical analysis. This has shown students how theoretical concepts can be used to solve practical problems involving complex geometries while also helping them secure jobs and internships.

“We are increasingly leveraging the power of engineering modeling and simulation, seamlessly, in the development, delivery and support of our products and services,” says Dan Newman ’83, chief engineer of advanced vertical lift at Boeing. “We rely on our knowledgeable and motivated workforce of well-rounded system-level thinkers to maximize the capability of engineering simulation to ensure and enhance quality, safety and affordability for all stakeholders throughout the product life cycle.

The new eCornell simulation certificate builds on Cornell’s Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), A Hands-on Introduction to Engineering Simulations, which recently surpassed 200,000 enrollments. The course is one of the most popular free MOOC’s offered by Cornell and was developed by Bhaskaran pre-COVID-19, when online learning wasn’t as common as it has become today. He saw online learning as a good platform to learn a tech-centered skill and wanted to reach a wide audience.

“Simulation is a disruptive technology that can be used to transform engineering curriculum at the university level,” said Bhaskaran. “As simulation becomes a standard feature of curriculum for teaching physics and applications, nearly every engineering graduate should be able to use simulation software effectively. Together with Ansys, we look forward to preparing engineers with the simulation skillset they need.”

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Center for Virtual Care expands digital health training

Digital health and the tools for patients to virtually reach their health care providers have quickly become a mainstay of medical care during the COVID-19 pandemic. Weill Cornell Medicine’s Center for Virtual Care is positioned at the leading edge of this health care delivery transformation. Leveraging their years of experience with video visits, the center’s experts train providers how to best use it to give their patients comprehensive, compassionate care.

Since its formal launch in early 2020, the center has hosted 30 sessions with more than 500 health care providers across the continuum – physicians, residents, medical students, physician assistants and physician assistant students, nurses, care managers and other practitioners – teaching them “web-side” manner, how to examine patients and make treatment-related decisions remotely, and other fundamentals through live courses and simulations. Trainings began in person, but quickly transitioned to remote learning in March 2020 with the emergence of COVID-19. The center’s latest offering is a two-week online course, developed in collaboration with eCornell, that provides strategies practitioners can use when meeting remotely with their patients.

“Our physicians have been delivering digital health care since 2016 and have seen firsthand the power of the virtual doctor’s office in reaching our patients, especially with the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Dr. Rahul Sharma, chairman of Weill Cornell Medicine’s Department of Emergency Medicine, which operates the center. “The Center for Virtual Care strives to train our health care colleagues on digital health best practices and drive national dialogue about the value of this new clinical medium in delivering the finest patient care.”

The new eCornell course, which features a curriculum in-line with the Association of American Medical College’s Telehealth Competencies, offers instruction on how to harness the digital health medium to effectively create a therapeutic patient-provider encounter. Students learn essentials including verbal and nonverbal communication strategies to convey empathy and compassion, how to overcome technical challenges, and how to conduct remote patient exams.

“As physicians, providing high-quality care is the bedrock of our work, regardless of whether that care happens in-person or on a screen,” said Dr. Peter Greenwald, director of telemedicine in the Department of Emergency Medicine and an assistant professor of clinical emergency medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine. “The work we are doing at the Center for Virtual Care is helping establish a new patient provider space that, like the office exam room, has its own set of rules, practices and tools of the trade. The material we teach at the center allows practitioners to become proficient in this new space in order to make their digital health care a practice of excellence.”

The digital medium offers patients the opportunity to connect with providers at a time and place that’s convenient for them. But telemedicine practice can create new communication barriers and may even expose providers and institutions to risk. The Center for Virtual Care tackles these issues to ensure that digital health offers its very best therapeutic benefits at the lowest medical-legal risk.

“The center’s goal is to empower physicians and provide them with the tools they need to become proficient in the digital space,” said Dr. Neel Naik, the director of simulation education for the Department of Emergency Medicine and an assistant professor of clinical emergency medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine. “The pandemic has accelerated a shift toward virtual patient encounters and has underscored just how important these skills are in fostering a positive health care experience.”

Megan Burke is chief marketing officer for eCornell and Alyssa Sunkin-Strube is newsroom manager for Weill Cornell Medicine.

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eCornell gives high school students an analytic edge

A collaboration between eCornell and the nonprofit National Education Equity Lab is giving high school students in underserved communities the opportunity to develop skills in business analytics while also gaining the confidence to recognize they can excel in college, even in the Ivy League.

The partnership has resulted in eCornell’s first certificate course aimed at high school students. Pre-college Analytics and Spreadsheet Modeling is a four-week pilot course that launched June 24 with a class of 132 students, who are learning how to organize and analyze data in Excel and use that information as a decision-making tool.

This course follows a “buy one, give one” model, whereby 60 students recruited by eCornell each pay $150 to enroll, which helps offset the costs of 72 students selected from Equity Lab’s network of partnering underserved high schools across the country. All of these schools receive Title 1 federal funding because of their high concentrations of poverty and families in need.

“Highly talented, motivated students in our lowest income communities – who tend to be largely students of color and first-generation students – are often unable to demonstrate that they’ve got what it takes to be a successful college student,” said Leslie Cornfeld, founder and CEO of Equity Lab. “Research shows that current college admissions metrics can mask talent, particularly for low-income students. Education, we know, is the number one lever for social and economic mobility, and the future success of our country.”

Equity Lab works to advance educational and life opportunities for highly talented, low-income students and students of color by collaborating with philanthropic, nonprofit and academic institutions such as the Common Application, the Carnegie Corporation of New York and Harvard University. Equity Lab and eCornell were brought together by Steven Carvell, vice provost for external education strategy, at a crucial time. COVID-19 has created an enormous surge in the need for innovative online education models, especially in communities that the Equity Lab targets, which have been hit hardest by the pandemic.

“These are the families that are on the front lines in our country right now. They are not only the essential workers. They are suffering the highest levels of unemployment, food and housing insecurity, and illness,” Cornfeld said. “And in the midst of this crisis, these students leaped at the opportunity to take this course.”

While some teenagers might blanch at the idea of spending a month of their summer vacation learning about spreadsheets, most of the slots Cornell made available to the Equity Lab students were filled within 24 hours of posting.

“These students don’t get opportunities like this very often, and they are determined to take full advantage of it,” said Cornfeld, a former federal civil rights prosecutor who served as an adviser on education equity issues for former President Barack Obama’s administration.

Knowledge of data analytics is essential for anyone hoping to join the 21st-century workforce, and it’s also a practical tool for managing personal finances, according to Donna Haeger, professor of practice in the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, who created and teaches the course.

“I always tell students that understanding how to make decisions with data is becoming just as important as reading and math,” said Haeger. “Businesses are really challenged right now to find qualified individuals who know how to model and make decisions using data. It doesn’t matter what industry you choose to enter. Data is everywhere.”

Haeger previously created a professional development certificate course in business analytics for eCornell. She modified those materials for a high school audience by simplifying the terminology and using age-appropriate examples. Rather than investing in a diversified portfolio, students solve problems like organizing a bake sale or buying clothing for a sports team. Haeger worked with eCornell to develop explanatory videos that are incorporated into the modules. And she added a weekly hourlong synchronous group session, so students can ask her questions directly and feel more connected.

“This course is a great equalizer. Everybody is able to jump in and try it for the first time. And it’s low risk for them,” Haeger said. “I think people are really intimidated by terms like ‘big data’ and ‘business analytics.’ I try to demystify all of that and make sure the students have a really positive experience. They realize, ‘Wow, I can do this.’”

The Equity Lab team has also been meeting with the students in weekly sessions to track their progress. Their feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, Cornfeld said. While the material is difficult, it has given them a chance to prove to themselves, and to higher education institutions, that they are able to meet the challenge.

For Donovan Blount, a rising senior at Rockaway Collegiate High School in Queens, New York, the certificate course is potentially life-changing.

“Opportunities like this are important for students like me because most students who grow up in low to average income neighborhoods cannot afford prestigious classes,” he said. “So a free, informative class like this can open up doors of opportunity that we did not know were even possible.”

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Certificate program examines winemaking in the U.S.

Interested in enhancing your knowledge of wines produced in the United States?

Cornell’s new Wines certificate program, guided by Cheryl Stanley, lecturer at the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, takes an in-depth look at the wines produced in the U.S.’s four major wine-producing states: California, Washington, Oregon and New York.

Ideal for current and aspiring hospitality professionals, wine distributors, retailers and wine enthusiasts, this online program offers participants the opportunity to develop a more nuanced knowledge of and appreciation for wine by exploring the winemaking process from grape to glass. Participants will learn how to interpret wine labels and navigate wine selection.

They will also connect grape varietals with the influences of geography effects and production factors to anticipate expected flavors and aromas.

“There is so much to be learned about wine,” Stanley said. “This program will build a foundation for professionals and enthusiasts alike to expand their knowledge of regions and varietals to ultimately prepare them to make better selections and pairings.”

This program consists of three three-week courses:

Wine Essentials;
Grape Varietals of California, New York and the Pacific Northwest; and
Experiencing Wines of California, New York and the Pacific Northwest.
Participants who complete the course will receive a certificate from Cornell’s School of Hotel Administration and 60 professional development hours. Visit the eCornell website to learn more about this program.

– Bailey Karfelt

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Certificate program teaches Python to working professionals

Python has become the preferred language of many computer programmers, supporting popular applications including software development, machine learning and data science. Featuring code that is simple to read, Python is a versatile language with a thriving support ecosystem and a broad open-source library.

“Python is often referred to as the ‘Swiss Army knife’ of programming,” said Walker White, program author and Stephen H. Weiss Provost’s Teaching Fellow in Computing and Information Science. “It is versatile and compatible with other languages, and therefore isn’t tied to one discipline.”

Learning a new skill can be challenging, and real-time feedback is essential to developing competence and preventing mistakes. To enable this, Cornell has created a Software Development in Python certificate program featuring innovative learning tools that are seamlessly integrated into the virtual classroom environment. These tools allow students to code and test Python expressions with immediate results. A built-in auto-grading system eliminates the need for manual assessments, making the learning process more efficient.

Ideal for all levels of programmers, the courses enable participants to master the foundational concepts of programming in Python. Participants will learn to apply Python-based solutions to real-world business problems, and professionally test and verify their own code.

Powered by eCornell, this program consists of six two-week courses:

  • Python Fundamentals
  • User-Defined Functions in Python
  • Developing a Currency Converter
  • Establishing the Control Flow
  • Mastering Data Structures
  • Auditing Datasets

Upon completion, participants will receive a Software Development in Python certificate. Visit the eCornell website for more information on this program.

– Bailey Karfelt

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Certificate program provides road map for innovation

Top companies recognize that a well-executed innovation strategy is vital to a successful product launch. Developing a strategy that aligns with company goals allows for measurable success and maximum return on investment.

To equip professionals with the tools needed to craft an effective innovation strategy, Cornell launched the Innovation Strategy certificate program, which will empower participants to develop a plan and allow them to properly deploy and measure its success.

“A successful innovation strategy allows for the creation of winning products to solve unmet needs for customers tied to an organization’s goals,” says faculty author Andrea Ippolito, executive director of the Engineering Management Program at Cornell Engineering. “A sound innovation strategy does not happen by accident. It’s the result of planning for both financial success and cultural change.”

From aspiring entrepreneurs and entry-level scientists to MBAs and executive leaders, a wide range of professionals will find value in this certificate program, which is available online through eCornell.

The Innovation Strategy certificate program consists of five two-week courses, which provide participants with the road map needed to design, deploy and track the progress of their plan. Courses include:

  • Developing Innovation Strategy
  • Building Innovation Complexities
  • Innovation Tools
  • Implementing Innovation
  • Evaluating and Scaling Innovation

After completing the courses, participants will receive a certificate from Cornell Engineering and 50 professional development hours. Visit the eCornell website to learn more about the program.

– Kristi Gaylord

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Certificate program develops understanding of beer selection

The craft beer industry is exploding. Consider this: New breweries open at a rate of more than one a day, giving people access to a broader selection of ingredients and flavor profiles to taste and explore.

This presents a challenge for restaurants and bars, which must reevaluate their beer offerings in order to stay relevant to the expanding taste buds of their clientele.

In response, the School of Hotel Administration has launched a Beer Essentials certificate program to help hospitality industry professionals develop the end-to-end understanding of beer production, tasting and selection necessary for establishing an effective beer program.

Applicable to anyone with ties to craft brewing, this program will provide in-depth knowledge of the beer industry, including how to analyze and make informed decisions regarding beer selections.

“Customers expect more diverse choices now than what they’ve traditionally been given,” said Douglass Miller, faculty program author and lecturer at the Hotel School, who has more than 30 years of industry experience.

“This program will provide a comprehensive look at developing an effective beer program,” Miller said, “from ingredients and process to sensory analysis, to serving, training and sales.”

The Beer Essentials program consists of four two-week courses:

  • Beer Ingredients and Production
  • Beer Styles
  • Establishing a Beer Program
  • Beer Sales and Training

After completing the courses, participants will earn a certificate from the Hotel School and 40 professional development hours. Visit the eCornell website to learn more about this program.

– Bailey Karfelt