Grant award to highlight German business, innovation on campus

Students, faculty, and staff will notice a cultural shift on campus during the week of Oct. 10 to 14.

Cornell was recently awarded a grant from the German Embassy to fund a week of programming called Germany Meets the U.S., which will be filled with lectures, displays, and a student innovation contest—complete with cash prizes.  German Studies Professor Tyler Carrington applied for the grant and will collaborate with Professor of Business Aaron Miller and Professor of Engineering Sciences Brian Johns throughout the week.

The goal is to feature the relevance of German influence in today’s business and engineering world.

“Germany has a huge presence in the U.S.,” Professor Carrington said. “We are going to have someone from the German American Chamber of Commerce come to speak, and we are going to have an international trade attorney speak. We’d like students to start to think about some of the possibilities for collaboration and innovation with regard to Germany and the U.S.—whether it’s engineering, computer science, or business.”

This is the first time the college has received a grant from the German Embassy. The $2,200 grant will give students something new to consider as they move forward with their studies.

“Basically, I want students to start thinking about a combination of German and business or German and engineering or German and computer science—the immense numbers of doors that can open for them,”  Professor Carrington said.

Events planned for the week include:

Germany Meets the U.S. Lecture on the German-American Business Landscape: Oct. 11—7 p.m., Thomas Commons, Hedges

This lecture will feature Joshua Seeberg, Manager of the Skills Initiative at the German-American Chamber of Commerce in Chicago, who will speak about the many business collaborations and innovations between the United States and Germany, as well as career opportunities for Cornell students. A Question and answer session will follow the lecture.

Information Session: Oct. 12 and 13, 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Thomas Commons

These sessions will feature a series of informative posters, graphics, videos, and interactive elements designed to get students thinking about both the presence of Germany in the U.S. and the possibilities for engineering and business innovation between young people in both countries. Students will also have the chance to get advice and information regarding specific internship and career possibilities with German-American companies.

Germany Meets the U.S. Lecture on International Trade: Oct. 13, 7 p.m., Thomas Commons, Hedges

This lecture will feature Wesley Carrington, senior attorney at John Deere in Moline, IL and formerly an international trade attorney at Hogan Lovells U.S. LLP in Washington, D.C., who has substantial experience in German-American trade issues. Carrington will present on the nature of U.S.-German trade relations, highlight some examples of German-American business cooperation, and discuss career opportunities in a variety of related fields. A question and answer session will follow the lecture.

Innovation Competition: Oct. 10 to 13

This competition will challenge students to prepare proposals for collaborative engineering, computer science, or business projects involving the United States and Germany and/or German businesses. Students will present their proposals electronically to a panel of faculty members and students who will award three finalists and five honorable mention cash prizes.

For more information, please contact Public Relations Director Jill Hawk at 319.895.4232 or jhawk@cornellcollege.edu.