The Cornell Farmworker Program (CFP) is dedicated to improving the living and working conditions of farmworkers and their families. We also seek recognition for farmworkers' contributions to society and their acceptance and full participation in local communities.
CFP’s current research and outreach efforts include: assessing farmworker needs; surveying immigration concerns; examining farmworkers’ social and economic interactions, health, culture, and future prospects; farmworker demographics; and providing on-farm English as a second language instruction. Click for more information.
The Cornell Farmworker Program offers a number of resources for farmworkers, their families, and those who work directly with farmworkers, such as agricultural employers and service providers:
Public Opinion Research Summaries from the Empire State Poll:
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Driving in New York State - Spanish Language Brochure
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Derechos de los Inmigrantes (Immigrants’ Rights) DVD
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Immigration Materials for Farmworkers (Fact Sheets, Referral Cards)
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Mexican Consulate Fact Sheet - Provides Mexican passport application information, in Spanish
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Resources for Farmworker Housing
- Addressing Immigration Concerns
- Cultural Competency and Provision of Health Services
- Driver's Education for Immigrant Farmworkers
- Driver's Licenses for Immigrant Farmworkers
- Emergency Planning and Preparation
- English as a Second Language
- Farmworker Contributions to Communities
- Immigrant Farmworker Social Integration Study
- NYS Farmworker Demographics
- NYS Farmworker Service Directory
- Farmworker Housing
The Cornell Farmworker Program will host its sixth annual student internship program during the Summer of 2013
Internship research topics will include, among others:
- Assessing farmworker needs
- Providing on-farm workshops including: English as a Second Language, Chemical Safety on Dairy farms, Emergency Planning and Career Opportunities for Farmworkers
- Surveying farmworker services and their usage
- Examining farmworker contributions to local communities
- Canvassing immigration concerns and developing relevant extension materials
- Researching opportunities for domestic Fair Trade
- Examining Mental Health concerns among farmworkers
Interns will be hosted by a range of local organizations. For application instructions, see sidebar.
Young Immigrants' Applications Fall
The number of applicants for an Obama administration program that allows young illegal immigrants to remain in the U.S. dropped to its lowest monthly level yet in January, a decline that experts attributed to the possibility of a comprehensive immigration overhaul, lack of awareness and the cost to apply. . . . . "Immigrants who work on a dairy farm aren't traveling to town for school," said Mary Jo Dudley, director of the Cornell Farmworker Program, which has been conducting workshops in rural upstate New York. "They came to this country to work."
Many immigrants are having trouble meeting the minimum requirements for enrolling in graduate equivalency degree, or GED, courses in some states, such as New York, according to Ms. Dudley.
Ms. Dudley's group isn't the only one trying to drum up interest in the program. United We Dream, which represents illegal young immigrants, plans to launch next week a national campaign to attract DACA applicants.
Read the story, By Miriam Jordan, The Wall Street Journal, March 14, 2013
Farmworkers Program receives triple recognition from Washington DC.
March 29th, 2012: Mary Jo Dudley, Director of the Cornell Farmworker Program (CFP) has been selected as a 'Champion of Change', as part of President Obama's "Winning the Future" initiative. More here.
Second: For the second year in a row, the Cornell Farmworkers Program was featured as one of a few selected programs that were highlighted in Cornell's application for the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.
Third: Citing her "commitment to action" on farmworkers' rights, the Clinton Global Initiative has chosen ILR Junior Alexis Werth to join university students from around the world at a CGI-sponsored conference in Washington, D.C. March 30-April 1.
Mary Jo Dudley selected as 2010 Kaplan Distinguished Faculty Fellow: read more...
Faculty Steering Committee
Mary Jo Dudley, Development Sociology and CFP Director, farmworkers@cornell.edu
Debra Castillo, Romance Studies, A&S, dac9@cornell.edu
Lance Compa, Collective Bargaining, Labor Law & Labor History, ILR, lac24@cornell.edu
Maria Cook, Professor, ILRIC, mlc13@cornell.edu
Angela Cornell, Labor Law Clinic, CLS, abc49@cornell.edu
Bob Gravani, Food Science, CALS, rbg2@cornell.edu
Philip McMichael, Development Sociology, CALS, pdm1@cornell.edu
Sharon Sassler, Policy Analysis and Management, CHE, ss589@cornell.edu
Sofia Villenas, Education, CALS, sav33@cornell.edu
Cornell Farmworker Program
Dept. of Development Sociology
181 Academic Surge B
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853
Phone: (607) 254-5194
FAX: (607) 255-9710
Email: farmworkers@cornell.edu