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The School of Industrial and Labor Relations

Work touches nearly all of us — but the relationships between workers, employers, and our economy are more complex than ever. At the ILR School, we’re at the heart of these critical intersections driving innovations that will define the future of work.

Explore our programs

Our Mission

We are the preeminent educational institution in the world focused on labor, management and the economy. As a New York land-grant college, we positively impact individuals and society through teaching, research and outreach.

Students on Libe Slope
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“This is no labor school where dogma will be taught, nor is this a management school where students will learn only to think of workingmen as items on a balance sheet.”
THOMAS E. DEWEY, the fifty-first governor of New York
Thomas Dewey, 51st Governor of NY speaking at a Madison Square Garden

ILR was founded in 1945 with a mandate to train labor and management to work for the common good of the employer and the employee.

Read about our History

Students

Through a flexible, interdisciplinary curriculum, our students examine workplace issues affecting individuals, organizations and communities, then go on to become leaders across industry, government, law, nonprofit and academia.

ILR Students at Homecoming
Our Students

Research

Our faculty are among the world’s leading scholars in the fields of work, labor, and employment. Our interdisciplinary research draws from economics, sociology, psychology, history, statistics and law to understand and advance the world of work.

Adam Seth Litwin speaks with two undergraduates in his office in Ives Hall.
Faculty and Research

Public Impact

As a New York State land-grant college, we conduct research that can be applied by workers, unions, organizations, legislators and communities. We build community partnerships, offer training and inform policy that extends our influence to communities across the state, the nation and the globe.

Esta Bigler speaks to inmates seated on bleachers at Cayuga Correctional facility
Public Impact
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by the numbers

From our faculty conducting groundbreaking research to our alumni leading organizations globally, the ILR School’s influence extends far beyond our Ithaca campus.

66

Faculty

51

RTE or Outreach Faculty

15+

Centers, Institutes & Programs

1,100+

Students

13,000+

Alumni

ILR Leadership Team

Alexander Colvin

  • Kenneth F. Kahn '69 Dean
  • Martin F. Scheinman ’75, MS ’76, Professor of Conflict Resolution

M. Diane Burton

  • Senior Associate Dean for Research, Outreach, and External Relations
  • Joseph R. Rich '80 Professor Human Resource Studies

Kate Griffith

  • Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Diversity, and Faculty Development
  • Jean McKelvey-Alice Grant Professor

Kara M. Lombardi

  • Assistant Dean for Student Experience and Wellbeing

Jennifer Sellen Dean

  • Assistant Dean of Alumni Affairs and Development

Craig Wren Wiggers

  • Associate Dean for Finance and Administration

David A. Yantorno

  • Assistant Dean of Communications, Marketing, and Web

ILR in the Media

The most recent news articles featuring ILR experts, who are the go-to media sources for journalists worldwide.

Information for Journalists

Looking ahead to August's jobs numbers

Marketplace
In this audio interview, ILR Senior Labor Market Advisor Erica Groshen comments on U.S. labor market stagnancy: “Our usual characterization of the labor market is it takes the escalator up and takes the escalator down – this is like we are spending a lot of time on that landing.”
Looking ahead to August's jobs numbers

Budget Percentages

Wallet Hub
ILR Professor Philipp Kircher offers tips for using percentage-based budgeting for personal finances.
Budget Percentages

Tompkins County reviewing study on minimum wage

607 News Now
“There is a big problem with wages and the cost of living being out of sync; cost of living is going up much more rapidly than wages are,” says Ian Greer, ILR Ithaca Co-Lab director, in this audio interview about a minimum-wage study he co-authored for Tompkins County.
Tompkins County reviewing study on minimum wage
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Contact Us

Find other departments

ILR Dean’s Office
Cornell University, ILR School
309 Ives Hall
Ithaca, NY 14853
Tel: (607) 255-2762 or (607) 255-2185

Undergraduate Admissions
Cornell University, ILR School
310 Dolgen Hall
Ithaca, NY 14853
Tel: (607) 255-2222
ilradmissions@cornell.edu

Graduate Programs
Cornell University, ILR School
216 Ives Hall
Ithaca, NY 14853
Tel: (607) 255-1522
ilrgradapplicant@cornell.edu