ILR in Albany
State legislators, alumni, staffers, lobbyists and others met with ILR School and Worker Institute representatives at Cornell Day in Albany Jan. 26.
Cornell’s land-grant colleges hold the information-sharing event in the state capitol every few years.
This year’s message about education, discovery and engagement was delivered in a Legislative Office Building section known as “the Well.” Thousands of Albany workers and members of the public walk through the underground hallway every week.
Linda Donahue, director of Online Labor Studies and of Union Communication Services, discussed Worker Institute research and public programs with event attendees.
Afterward, she said, “Cornell Day provide an excellent opportunity for ILR reps to familiarize policymakers with the ways in which we ‘advance the world of work’ with our students, in our communities and across the state through both resident and extension activities.”
State Sen. David Carlucci, D-Clarkstown, a 2002 ILR graduate who was the youngest member of the Senate when elected in 2010 at age 29, stopped by the ILR tables.
Other lawmakers who chatted with ILR staffers at the event included state Sen. Jesse Hamilton, D-Brooklyn, and state Assembly members Jo Anne Simon, D-Brooklyn, and Michael J. Fitzpatrick, R, C, I-Smithtown.
Fitzpatrick is well acquainted with the school; his daughter, Corina, is a 2004 ILR graduate and is now a college recruiter for Ernst & Young, also known as EY.
Pat Saunders of the Suffolk County Police Benevolent Association and others asked about professional programs, certificates and workshops offered in New York City, onsite and online by ILR and the Worker Institute.
University President Elizabeth Garrett made her first official visit to the capitol on Cornell Day, organized by the Cornell state government relations team, which includes Charles Kruzansky, Zoë Nelson and Paula Willsie.
ILR was joined at the event by the Colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Human Ecology and Veterinary Medicine, along with the College of Engineering, Weill Cornell Medicine and Cornell Cooperative Extension.