Summer Success Symposium
The Summer Success Symposium is a professional and community development event for new and continuing research students from across all graduate fields. Open to all research degree students, this symposium has a particular focus on bringing together Graduate School Dean’s Scholars and other students with an interest in contributing to Cornell’s core value to provide a Community of Belonging where scholars representing different backgrounds, perspectives, abilities, and experiences can learn, innovate, and work in an environment of respect.
Through this symposium, participants have the opportunity to form connections and establish community. This symposium also provides participants with the opportunity to engage with successful alumni, faculty, and professionals. Summer Success Symposium keynote and workshop content focused on providing participants with access to knowledge and insights that will help them navigate their successful transition into and progression through their graduate studies.
2026 Summer Success Symposium
August 18, 2026 | 10 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. ET | G10 Biotechnology Building
Agenda
10-10:15 a.m. ET
Check-In
Welcoming Remarks
10:15-10:30 a.m. ET
Speaker: Sara Xayarath Hernández, Associate Dean for Inclusion and Student & Faculty Engagement, Graduate School
Opening Plenary Session
10:30 – 11:30 a.m. ET
Steve Desir, EdD, Assistant Research Professor in the Pullias Center for Higher Education and the University of Southern California Race and Equity Center, and Director of Professional Development and Organizational Learning for the Equity in Graduate Education Resource Center at USC
Flash Talk & Engagement Session: Caring for Your Health & Well-Being
11:40 a.m. – 12:40 p.m. ET
Networking Lunch
12:40-1:15 p.m. ET
Alumni Keynote Session
1:15-2:30 p.m. ET
Jason Marvin, Ph.D. ’22, Director of Partnerships and External Relations at the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering
Finding Your Way: A Scientist’s Serendipitous Career Path from Academia to Science Advocacy
Knowledge in Action: Shared Strategies for Sustainable Success
2:30-3:30 p.m. ET
Event Sponsors
Graduate School Office of Inclusion & Student Engagement, the Cornell Duffield College of Engineering Office of Inclusive Excellence, and the Cornell Chapter of the Bouchet Graduate Honor Society
Attribution Statement
This program was modeled in part after PROMISE: Maryland’s NSF AGEP Summer Success Institute.
The launch and institutionalization of the Summer Success Symposium benefited from support from the 2016 ETS/CGS Award for Innovation in Promoting Success in Graduate Education and National Science Foundation under Award No. 1647094, CIRTL AGEP Transformation Alliance from 2016-2022. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the Cornell PI team and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.