One year ago, the Recruitment and Employment Center launched the Cornell Onboarding Center to provide a "one-stop" service for newly hired nonacademic staff members to complete paperwork and other universal tasks. Soon, the same streamlined service will extend to new faculty and academic professionals.

As of March 1, new faculty, archivists, librarians, lecturers, instructors, research scientists, and extension, research and teaching associates will be able to meet for individual appointments with staff in the onboarding center, located in East Hill Plaza, to:

The onboarding center also provides resources that help employees new to the Ithaca area find their communities on and off campus. Examples include the Cornell Colleague Network Groups (veterans, LGBT, women of color and men of color), volunteer opportunities and such community networking groups as Tompkins Connect, a group for young professionals.

A streamlined NetID activation process and a Welcome to Cornell website allow new hires to also complete some of these details before their start date.

"We are excited about the opportunity to welcome new academic hires into the onboarding process and provide services that will help them and their families successfully transition to the Cornell and local community," said Jeff Herman, director of the onboarding center. "But the onboarding of a new employee doesn't stop with us," said Herman. "Each college and unit does its part to successfully welcome new faculty and staff to the Cornell community."

Herman said that 423 staff members have visited the onboarding center since its inception, with 97 percent of survey respondents feeling welcomed in their new workplaces and at the center. Most felt that the length of their individual appointment was about right, the location of the center easy to access and the materials they received helpful, he said. More than 80 percent activated their NetID prior to their start date -- a feature that faculty are likely to appreciate, since the NetID is key to setting up Cornell email and other online services, Herman said.