Term Dates: 7/1/26-6/30/29

Chris B. Schaffer is the Meinig Family Professor of Engineering in the Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering at Cornell University. Trained in physics at the University of Florida and Harvard University, with postdoctoral training in neuroscience at the University of California at San Diego, he co-leads a research laboratory with Professor Nozomi Nishimura that develops advanced optical imaging approaches to study cellular and microvascular function in the living brain. Their work has helped elucidate mechanisms contributing to neurological disorders including Alzheimer’s disease, vascular cognitive impairment, and microvascular stroke, while also advancing new imaging technologies for observing biological systems in vivo. His laboratory is supported by the NIH, NSF, and the Alzheimer’s Association, and he is a Fellow of Optica, the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

In addition to his research program, Chris has long been engaged in teaching, mentoring, and educational innovation at Cornell. He has led curriculum reform efforts for the PhD program in Biomedical Engineering, secured multiple education-focused graduate student training grants, and implemented holistic admissions practices that increased diversity within the PhD program. His teaching emphasizes active learning, scientific reasoning, and deep student engagement, and he has led externally funded educational partnerships connecting graduate education with K–12 schools and community institutions, including a current NIH-funded collaboration with the Ithaca Sciencenter to develop a biomedical engineering exhibit. His contributions to teaching and mentoring have been recognized with multiple college- and university-level awards, including the Kendall S. Carpenter Memorial Advising Award.

Chris has also been deeply involved in faculty governance and university leadership throughout his more than twenty years at Cornell. He has served in the Faculty Senate for most of that time, including service on the University Faculty Committee, and completed a three-year term as Associate Dean of Faculty. Across these roles, he has worked to strengthen faculty participation in university decision-making, increase the representation and voice of Research, Teaching, and Extension faculty in governance processes, and improve institutional approaches to issues including sexual harassment prevention, student conduct procedures, and expressive activity policy. During periods of significant institutional challenge, he has also served as a faculty representative on major university-wide committees, including the committee overseeing the restoration of research operations following the COVID-19 shutdown and the committee that developed Cornell’s recent expressive activities framework.

Beyond Cornell, Chris spent a sabbatical year in Washington, DC, serving as a science policy advisor to Senator Edward Markey through an AAAS Congressional Science and Engineering Fellowship. That experience deepened his interest in the relationship between universities, public trust, and democratic institutions, and reinforced the importance of clear communication between academic communities and the broader society they serve.

As Dean of Faculty, Chris aims to strengthen Cornell’s tradition of shared governance by promoting early, substantive, and transparent faculty engagement in university decision-making. He believes the Faculty Senate and its committees function most effectively when they are meaningful partners in the development of institutional policy, rather than acting primarily in a reactive capacity. He is particularly committed to ensuring that faculty expertise is brought to bear on major university issues in a timely and constructive way.

Chris also sees stewarding trust, collegiality, and intellectual community across the university as an important priority. At a time when universities face significant external pressures and internal tensions, he believes Cornell’s strength depends on maintaining a culture of open inquiry, thoughtful debate, mutual respect, and shared institutional purpose. His approach to leadership emphasizes careful listening, substantive engagement, transparency, and collaborative problem-solving in service of Cornell’s academic mission and faculty community.

Term Dates: 7/1/25-6/30/28

The abiding focus of my research has been the role that the material world—everyday objects, representational media, natural and built landscapes—plays in our political lives. Much of my previous work centered on archaeological investigations of the South Caucasus during the Bronze and Iron Ages. At present, this interest is focused on the emerging field of heritage forensics, a research program located at the intersection of archaeology, critical heritage studies, human rights, and international law. A co-director of the Caucasus Heritage Watch research team, our investigations utilize earth-observing satellites to monitor cultural heritage at risk of abuse due to its critical position in the enduring rivalry between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

I received my BA in Anthropology and Political Science from Brown University and an M.Phil. from Cambridge in Social and Political Thought. I completed my Ph.D. in Anthropology at the University of Arizona followed by a postdoctoral fellowship in the University of Michigan Society of Fellows. Before moving to Cornell, I was a faculty member in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Chicago.

• Advises on policies and procedures.
• Maintains the Faculty Handbook.
• Supports the University Lectures Committee.
• Manages the work of the Faculty Advisory Committee on Tenured Appointments (FACTA).
• Facilitates the Stephen H. Weiss awards nomination process.

Jill is a long-term Cornell employee who holds a degree in Business Administration. She worked in the Colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences and Veterinary Medicine prior to the Dean of Faculty Office. Jill enjoys an active lifestyle, is an experienced baker, finds time to read and values family.

• Manages the Dean’s calendar and reservations for 305 Day Hall conference room.
• Editor for the University Faculty Memorial Statements.
• Supports UFC, N&E, Faculty Senate committees

C.A. has a B.A. in Classics, Art History, and Archaeology. Her early career was spent working on archaeological digs and in museum collections management. Before joining the Office of the Dean of Faculty, she supported two Cornell Vice Presidents. C.A. is an animal lover who enjoys spending time in nature.

• Manages the Cornell Academics and Professors Emeriti (CAPE) organization.
• Plans events and lectures for CAPE members.
• Facilitates the process for Podell Endowment Awards.

Melissa also holds a masters and bachelors degree in music education and is the founding artistic director of the Odyssey Choir in Ithaca, NY. She worked in concert production at the Yale Institute of Sacred Music prior to the Dean of Faculty Office at Cornell. She enjoys walking in nature, doing yoga, speaking Italian, and playing with her dog.