Question

Dear all,

I am interested in the workshops organized for Cornell’s students’ partners.

My partner does not live in Ithaca right now and does not have access to the in-person activities.

Besides being a member of the job mailing list, is there anything else he can do to profit from these workshops?

Thank you,

Student with Partner Looking for Employment Support

Response

Dear Student with Partner Looking for Employment Support,

Thank you so much for reaching out about your situation.  It is quite common that our graduate student partners are interested in employment – we understand.  In my role as Students with Families Advisory Committee Chair, this is something that we take seriously and try to help support.  Please see this information.  I am sorry to learn that your partner will not be able to join us for the events that we have scheduled, but offer the following ideas and suggestions for you and your partner:

• Please know that we offer our in-person sessions once a year so if he is not able to attend the sessions in person right now, he will be able to do so in the future.
• One of the sessions, sponsored by Tompkins Workforce New York (on September 27) is a great session and provides an overview of services that they provide.  My recommendation is that he not wait to connect with Tompkins Workforce until next year, but instead go and meet with them directly.  They are a fantastic organization and can help him now (even from afar) and are the experts of employment in Tompkins County.  And, if you would like to attend the session, we have had students attend to gather the necessary information to share with their partners.
• You are correct that he can/should be on our listserv; which is designed to inform partners about employment opportunities and some training/volunteering opportunities.  I would also encourage that he participates on our Facebook site as we announce related items for partners there as well.
• He may want to consider attending a future Grad Student & “Better Half” Happy Hour as this tends to be a great opportunity to network with other spouses/partners in similar situations and some (not all) of the conversation is about employment. 
• About the Information and Network Session with Cornell Human Resources…  This will be on November 27 and is a great opportunity for spouses/partners who are interested in working at Cornell University and to get in front of our HR units.  If he is really interested and could travel for this event, I would encourage him to consider this.  We only do this session once/year, but know of some families who have made some adjustments to be there because it is such a unique and helpful event.  If he is not able to attend, please have him connect with me and I am happy to talk with any student partner/spouse about such issues to see what we can do.

Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.

Wishing you and your partner all the best!

Janna Lamey
Assistant Dean for Graduate Student Life