Students and faculty of the American Studies Program

Interdisciplinary engagement with what America means

About Us

The Program in American Studies offers an interdisciplinary engagement with what America means in the United States and in a global context. Faculty encourage students to look at the meaning and reality of the evolving United States as a question still in need of answering and as an experiment still in process, not as a dream fully realized. We use multiple perspectives and methodologies and require that students synthesize knowledge in ways that develop the skills needed for rigorous, complex analysis.

Giving to the American Studies Program

Unrestricted gifts, no matter what the amount, help support every facet of the American Studies Program. Gifts may also be designated to support a specific area of the program’s activities. Endowments provide assurance that funding will be available in perpetuity to support the program.

You can make a gift online at Cornell’s Alumni, Parents & Friends page or send a check payable to “Cornell University” (Memo: American Studies Program) to:

Cornell University
Box 37334
Boone, IA 50037-0334

American Studies Graduates at Commencement

American Studies News

'My classes allowed me to look at the world around me in ways that I had never done before'

Rebecca Parish is an American studies major.

'It's essential to view history considering multiple perspectives'

Isabella Riano is an American studies & government major.

Person working on an enormous piece of equipment

Barrier-breaking astronomer graces a U.S. quarter

Immortalized in a series honoring notable women, Vera Cooper Rubin, MS ’51, is the first Cornellian ever featured on a coin.

CAU lets you go back to school (without those pesky prelims)

For more than half a century, Cornell’s Adult University has offered summer courses on the Hill — from cooking to cycling and beyond.

Explore home space in a teenage sitcom during upcoming lecture

"Sanctuary from the Storm: Making (My) Room with The Torkelsons," will explore Sheppard’s fondness for the 1990s television show and what the show’s representation of home spaces can tell us about the way television influences living practices.

Latina/o Studies offers new way to connect with alumni

“Fridays with Alumni” kicks off Jan. 31 featuring Kim Cardenas '17 & Joseph De Los Santos '19,

Three people stand behind a product table for "Seen Nutrition"

Ithaca startup’s product builds bone health using NY milk protein

Two friends who bonded over shared concerns over their bone health have formulated a bioavailable calcium chew using milk protein from Finger Lakes dairy farms.

Person wearing a red jacket speaks at a podium, to an auditorium full of students

Learn local lore, Cornell historian Earle says in ‘Last Lecture’

Lecturer Corey Ryan Earle ’07, Cornell’s unofficial historian, gave the latest installment in the Last Lecture series, which invites a respected staff member or professor to give a lecture as if it were their final one.

More American Studies news

Alumni Connections: Megan Zhang '16

Megan Zhang was an American Studies major who also took a premed curriculum:

"My American studies major gave me a unique background during med school interviews, and was definitely a conversation starter. It makes you a much more competent person in dealing with people who have different backgrounds than yourself. I appreciate the confidence it gives me to ask people about their side of the story, because there’s always another side of the story.”

After graduating, Megan spent a gap year working with families at a women’s and children’s shelter outside of Boston has opened her eyes to the diversity of experiences and situations that can lead someone to become homeless.