Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research

09/03/2026

Registration for our Second Annual Head Start & Early Childhood Education Summit closes this Friday, September 4.

Join researchers, policymakers, and Head Start practitioners for a day of honest, evidence-based conversation, featuring keynote speaker Tyler Watts, a policy update from Tommy Sheridan, and a practice and policy panel with Chloe Gibbs, Alberta Conteh, and moderator Taryn Morrissey.

Date: Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Location: 570 Lexington Ave, 12th Floor, New York, NY
Free to attend, lunch provided.

https://bctr.cornell.edu/headstartsummit

09/01/2026

What's the most important thing you've learned in life that you'd like to pass on?

That's the question Karl Pillemer suggests asking an older woman in your life. It's more about what she learned, not what she did. A routine that made sense a while ago might not translate today, but the wisdom underneath it usually does.

Pillemer directs the Cornell Legacy Project, which has gathered practical life advice from nearly 1,500 older adults since 2004. The same themes keep surfacing: prioritize relationships over money, say yes more often, and notice the small pleasures.

Pillemer's advice is featured in a new TIME article.

Ask an older woman what she’s learned. Her answer could change your week.

08/27/2026

What does it take to turn decades of research into meaningful change for New York's kids and families?

Our 2026 Extension Spotlight shows how, moving research into communities across the state and beyond. Examples include:

-PRYDE's Youth Investigators Program, which puts research tools directly in teens' hands

-Farmers' market nutrition programs with Cornell University Cooperative Extension New York City, reaching thousands of New Yorkers

Trauma-informed training from the Residential Child Care Project, Cornell University, reaching many of the state's public schools

This report highlights five programs translating Cornell research into meaningful impact.

Rooted in our land-grant mission, this year's spotlight tells the story of a center closing the gap between what research knows and what our communities experience, one classroom, farmers' market and community center at a time.

08/25/2026

Head Start's future is a major topic of debate right now, and our Second Annual Head Start & Early Childhood Education Summit is bringing researchers, policymakers, and practitioners together to talk about it.

Keynote speaker Tyler Watts opens the day, followed by a Head Start policy update from Tommy Sheridan and a practice and policy panel with Chloe Gibbs, Alberta Conteh, and moderator Taryn Morrissey. The day also includes research flash talks and working sessions focused on next steps for the field.

Date: Saturday, September 19, 2026, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Location: 570 Lexington Ave, 12th Floor, New York, NY
Free to attend, lunch provided. Registration closes Friday, September 4.

The complete agenda and registration info: https://lnkd.in/gcXFkaSa

08/21/2026

We're entering a new chapter at the BCTR! Starting Sept. 1, Laura Bellows becomes our new faculty director, and Kristen Elmore steps into the role of executive director.

Bellows has spent her career connecting nutrition research to communities and has deep ties to BCTR. She was our Evalyn Edwards Milman Faculty Fellow from 2023 to 2025 and has helped shape our Head Start and Early Childhood Education Summit, happening in New York City on Sept. 19. We hope you'll be attending!

Elmore has been part of BCTR since 2016, most recently leading the Program for Research on Youth Development & Engagement (PRYDE), and will guide our day to day work and student engagement.

They take over from Tony Burrow, who led BCTR for six years and will continue directing the Purpose Science and Innovation Exchange, housed here at the center.

We're grateful for Tony's six years of visionary leadership and excited for what's ahead.

More on this transition here: https://bctr.cornell.edu/two-new-leaders-one-shared-mission-bellows-and-elmore-take-the-helm-at-bctr/

08/14/2026

Head Start could look very different soon. Major changes to its federal rules are on the table.

We're bringing together early childhood researchers, policymakers, and Head Start practitioners for our Second Annual Head Start & Early Childhood Education Summit in partnership with the NYS Council on Children and Families.

We'll dig into the research behind Head Start, what's at stake in current policy debates, and what evidence-based programs actually need to serve children well.

Head Start traces its roots to research by our namesake, Urie Bronfenbrenner, and we continue his legacy with honest, evidence-based conversation when the program needs it most.

Date: Saturday, September 19, 2026, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Location: 570 Lexington Ave, New York, NY
Free to attend, lunch provided. Space is limited.

More info: https://bctr.cornell.edu/headstartsummit

08/05/2026

Learn a bit more about New York State 4-H on the latest edition of All Things Local from 607 News Now, featuring NYS 4-H Director Alexa Maille.
https://607newsnow.com/podcasts/all-things-local-8-4-26/

Cornell Cooperative Extension
College of Human Ecology at Cornell

Kate Supron is joined this week by Alexa Maille from NYS 4H.

07/16/2026

“Residential care is the last resort” sounds like a policy line, but it lands as a verdict on children and on the people who care for them. In this podcast conversation, Co-Director of the Resident…

07/16/2026

What happens when more than 200 New York 4-H youth spend three days at Cornell exploring careers through hands-on experiences? They discover just how many possibilities lie ahead.

During the annual 4-H Career Explorations Conference this month, middle and high school students explored fields ranging from artificial intelligence, climate-smart agriculture and water science to nutrition, plant biology and engineering. Along the way, they learned directly from Cornell faculty, researchers and students while experiencing life on a college campus.

In one session, students discovered how AI is transforming agriculture and forestry. As 11th grader Gabriella Coelho shared, "I learned that AI has uses beyond homework help or writing essays. It's also used in agriculture to track patterns and improve farming."

Other participants studied New York's freshwater ecosystems, investigated how scientists protect water resources, explored cutting-edge plant technologies, and even learned how researchers are helping plants "communicate" using sensors and robotics.

In Cornell's Discovery Kitchen, 4-H'ers got a taste of careers in nutrition and dietetics by preparing healthy granola bars while learning about food safety, recipe development and adapting meals for different dietary needs. The team made a substitution on the fly to accommodate one student’s allergy. As Erin Green, lecturer in the Division of Nutritional Sciences, explained: "That's part of being an R.D. — having to make recipe adjustments and knowing what substitutes are appropriate."

The conference concluded with an inspiring reminder from New York State Agriculture Commissioner Richard Ball about the opportunities ahead: "You are the next generation of people that are going to research and figure out how to do these things better."

By planting the seeds of curiosity today, Cornell and New York State 4-H are helping cultivate tomorrow's scientists, innovators, health professionals and leaders.

Read the full story at https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/07/cornell-4-hers-plant-seeds-future-careers

Photo Credit: RJ Anderson, Galib Braschler, Alex Bayer, Juan Vazquez-Leddon

07/13/2026

Are our moral views easily overridden by our own interests? Not necessarily. Decades of research offer an evidence-based theory of why moral views shift.