Empowered by Ann S. Bowers’ investment, Cornell Bowers CIS is pursuing a growth strategy that will expand the college’s impact on higher education, technology, and society.
New Building
The Bowers gift provides critical space in a new multi-use building that will house an exemplary environment for teaching, research, interdisciplinary exchange, and interactive learning. In bringing the college’s three departments closer, the building will also further nourish the vibrant computing and information science community thriving at the heart of the Ithaca campus.
The college has contracted with award-winning Boston-based firm, Leers Weinzapfel Associates, to lead the design of the building, which will stand adjacent to Bill & Melinda Gates Hall. Steve Conine ’95 and his wife Alexi Conine ’96, as well as Niraj Shah ’95 and his wife Jill Shah, added to the Bowers gift momentum with a combined $10 million gift in September 2021.
Faculty Expansion
Cornell Bowers CIS faculty are world leaders whose research is expanding fields of inquiry, developing core technologies, and examining the societal, sustainability, and ethical implications of technological innovation.
The college is investing heavily to increase its faculty—with a goal to increase by 50% over the next few years.
Growth at this scale will allow the college to foster research excellence, expand critical and emerging fields, increase opportunities for cross-disciplinary and universitywide collaboration, and respond to overwhelming student interest in the college’s classes and programs.
Niraj Shah ’95 & Steve Conine ’95
Gifts totaling $10 million—$5 million from Steve Conine ’95 and his wife Alexi Conine ’96, and $5 million from Niraj Shah ’95 and his wife Jill Shah—were announced in September 2021.
The combined gift, led by the co-founders of the online home-goods retailer Wayfair, will bolster college growth to support increasing student demand and interest in computing and information science.
Student Experiences and Educational Opportunities
David Kim ’22 works on a robot to assist people with mobility issues
The college provides a solid foundation of technical expertise, strong fundamentals, and theory, preparing students for how to think—both analytically and creatively—to solve problems across multiple domains.
The college attracts and enrolls the best young minds and provides them with first-class engaged learning opportunities, mentoring, and the tools they need to be successful in their chosen fields.
Student app developers enrich life on campus and beyond
Undergraduate enrollment in the college’s majors has grown sixfold over the past decade, with a record 2,000 majors in spring 2022. Notably, more than 76% of Cornell’s 15,500 undergraduates take at least one Cornell Bowers CIS class.
At the graduate level, Cornell Bowers CIS competes internationally for top talent, and alumni go on to shape the future of computing and information technology across academia and industry.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Cornell was an early and enthusiastic leader in dramatically broadening the scope of the technology field to include, support, and advance more women and students from traditionally underrepresented groups.
As a result, the Cornell Bowers CIS student body surpasses the national average for diversity: 43% of computing and information science majors are women, and 16% are underrepresented minorities.
Looking ahead, the college aims to further grow the diversity
of backgrounds, identities, intellectual persuasions, and passions of its students to make those ever more reflective of the world and communities from which they come, and the futures of which they will shape.
Diversity is a foundational priority and three summer offerings – CSMore, SoNIC, Designing Technology for Social Impact Workshop – demonstrate that commitment.