Two Cornell Human Ecology faculty members have recently been awarded fellowships, including one that was newly endowed.

Denise Green ’07, associate professor in the Department of Human Centered Design, has been named the inaugural Morgan Engaged Faculty Fellow, and Laura Bellows, associate professor in the Division of Nutritional Sciences, has been named the new Evalyn Edwards Milman ’60 Fellow, both in the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research (BCTR). Both will serve in their roles through June 2025.

The BCTR Engaged Faculty Fellowships are two-year term appointments that are designed to enable community-based research projects. They include funding for a graduate student and a discretionary research budget. The Morgan fellowship was recently established.

“It is fitting that this new fellowship is named after Becky and Jim Morgan, whose unwavering support for CHE’s mission of improving human lives touches on almost every aspect of our college today,” said Rachel Dunifon, the Rebecca Q. and James C. Morgan Dean of the College of Human Ecology. “Denise Green is the perfect person to hold the inaugural Morgan Fellowship.  Professor Green’s cutting-edge research exemplifies CHE’s commitment to sparking change in the world through innovation and impact.”

Green’s research explores the intersection of fashion studies and anthropology, focusing on both the technical methods of textile design as well as the cultural importance and the environmental impact of clothing. Green is director of the Cornell Fashion + Textile Collection where she curates, advises, and oversees exhibitions. She is the first BCTR faculty fellow with a fiber science and apparel design background, expanding the scope of the center.

“We know the fashion system is responsible for a great deal of harm. At the same time, fashion has the transformative potential to empower, educate, inspire and bring joy into people’s lives,” Green said. “With support from the Morgan fellowship, I will have the opportunity to further my research on the ways fashion could make a more positive impact on people and the planet.”

Green also coordinates the Cornell Natural Dye Studio and founded the Cornell Natural Dye Garden. Support from the Morgan Fellowship will further Green’s work to identify alternative sources of natural dyes from food waste and invasive plants. Support will also help Green complete a book on the history and influence of fashion displays in public spaces, and an exhibit on fashion and freedom of expression in October, as part of Cornell University’s Freedom of Expression theme year.

“Evalyn and Stephen Milman established the Milman Faculty Fellowship in the BCTR in 2015, and since that time the college has awarded four fellowships to exceptional faculty who are engaging in exciting translational research that has grown BCTR’s research program and impact both within and outside of Cornell,” Dunifon said. “We are delighted to have Laura Bellows as our fifth and newest Milman Fellow and to support her work in this important and visible way.”

Bellows’ research centers on community-informed behavioral interventions, focused on the development of eating habits and physical activity patterns in early childhood, including how parents’ behavior and a child’s home environment affect these behaviors. Her focus on youth parallels the preference for the Milman Fellow to focus on the needs of younger children.

“It’s an honor to be selected for this fellowship as the BCTR’s mission aligns so closely with my commitment to engage with community partners to address public health issues through programs and research,” said Bellows. “I look forward to working with BCTR colleagues to promote and advance translational research at Cornell.”

Bellows noted that she’s particularly excited to work with students, including PRYDE Scholars and graduate students, to train the next generation of scholars engaging in translational research via designing and evaluating community-informed interventions.   

Bellows’ work has received funding from the Department of Agriculture, the National Institutes of Health, and various community foundations.  Bellows received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) from President Barack Obama in 2011 and received the Society of Nutrition Education and Behavior’s Mid-Career Award in 2019.  

“The BCTR is excited to have Drs. Green and Bellows as part of the center though these fellowships,” said Anthony Burrow, BCTR director and Ferris Family Associate Professor of Life Course Studies. “The focus of their respective lines of research directly aligns with the mission of the BCTR to solve problems to improve lives and expands the center’s work within CHE in meaningful ways.”