Janet Loebach
Janet Loebach is the Evalyn Edwards Milman Assistant Professor in Child Development in the Department of Human Centered Design, and the Director of the DECA Lab (Design Environments with|for Children & Adolescents). Dr. Loebach received a Bachelor degree in Civil Engineering & Society from McMaster University (Canada), a Master of Environmental Design from the School of Architecture and Planning at Dalhousie University (Canada), and a PhD in Children's, Urban and Health Geographies from the Department of
Minor in Healthy Futures
Help make people healthier by understanding the behavioral, social and environmental factors that impact overall wellness.
- Apr 20, 2026
- by Galib Braschler
- Community Engagement, Holistic Human Health
Gerontology minor prepares students for an aging world
For Marie Cajoux ’26, her interest in aging began long before she declared a minor.
Watching her grandmother navigate the health-care system, she saw firsthand how difficult and deeply personal aging can be. There were moments when her grandmother struggled to be heard. Moments that stayed with her. That experience shaped Cajoux’s path, leading her to geriatric care and eventually to Cornell’s gerontology minor.
“It inspired me to really think about pursuing geriatrics as my
Mardelle McCuskey Shepley
Dr. Mardelle McCuskey Shepley, B.A., M.Arch., M.A., D.Arch., is an emerita professor at Cornell University in the Department of Human Centered Design and Emerita Director of the Cornell Institute for Health Futures. Previously she served a professor at Texas A&M University (TAMU) and was director of the TAMU Center for Health Systems & Design. Mardelle is an emerita fellow in the American Institute of Architects and the American College of Healthcare Architects. She is LEED
Navika Gangrade
Navika Gangrade, Ph.D., RDN, is a lecturer at the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research. In addition to teaching various classes, she is responsible for overseeing the Cornell Human Ecology in New York City summer internship program.
Prior to joining Cornell, Dr. Gangrade was a visiting assistant professor in the Nutrition Program at New York University, Department of Nutrition and Food Studies. She earned her Ph.D. in nutrition and registered dietitian credentials (RDN) from Cornell University
Olga Malysheva
