For his capstone project for the Cornell Humanities Scholars program, Jeffrey Ho ’26 explored Cornell University Library’s archival materials to investigate how the campus community dealt with two pivotal public health crises: the HIV/AIDS pandemic of the ’80s and the recent global outbreak of COVID-19. What he discovered was the power of communications to promote safety and build a sense of togetherness during times of fear and uncertainty.

To share his findings, Ho curated the exhibit "Public Health on the Hill: Creating Community through Communication" at the Michael T. Sillerman ’68 Rotunda of Kroch Library, showcasing materials from Cornell University Library’s Rare and Manuscript Collections (RMC). 

“I’ve done presentations before, but I really wanted to challenge myself in the Humanities Scholars program, and an exhibit is such an in-depth way to not only do research but also explore this idea of communicating and connecting with the public that I was interested in,” said Ho, who was assisted by exhibition coordinator Kate Carlin and research and instruction librarian Emily Beran.

"Public Health on the Hill" is the first student-curated exhibit at RMC, said Beran, who provides instructional support for the Humanities Scholars program. “We thought this might be the perfect opportunity to trial a student exhibition and explore the feasibility of this kind of project going forward,” she said.

Ho’s displays featured materials from the 1990s through the 2020s, including newspaper clippings, course syllabi, photographs, and other artifacts.

Evident in the exhibit is the contrast between the smaller, ad hoc student-led campaigns during the HIV/AIDs crisis and the more centralized university efforts to share information and safety protocols around COVID-19 as part of the Cornell’s overarching “Live Smarter” campaign, which included messaging and branding across different promotional pieces from posters and stickers to t-shirts and face masks. 

Access to archival materials is invaluable to researchers, Ho said, and he expressed his hopes that the exhibit will spark more scholarship.

“One of the huge things about presenting these primary sources is not only are you creating argument, but you’re allowing your audience to draw their own arguments, conclusions, and questions,” he said.

"Public Health on the Hill" runs through June 10. Information about RMC’s hours of operation is found at rare.library.cornell.edu.