To better reflect the future direction of the food industry, the Cornell University Home Study Program is changing its name to the Cornell University Food Industry Management Distance Education Program, said George S. Hayward, director of the program.

The Distance Education Program has expanded its course offerings beyond the core of home study correspondence courses into workshops, videos, executive seminars and CD-ROM computer-based training. Hayward said that some activities are currently conducted through the program's home page on the World Wide Web.

"The rapidly evolving Internet offers tremendous potential for delivering interactive training programs," Hayward said.

Although the name has changed, the Distance Education Program's mission remains the same: to meet the educational and training needs of the retail food industry managers and associates with cost-effective courses. The program will continue to provide quality programs and service that the food industry has come to expect from the Home Study Program over the last 32 years.

Currently, more than 40 written courses are offered in the Distance Education Program's series, in such areas as business law, food store sanitation, accounting, customer relations, managing meat, produce, bakery, deli, seafood, floral and cheese departments.

One of the latest offerings is the Personal Hygiene CD-ROM, an interactive computer-based training program for all store associates who handle ready-to-eat or fresh food. It describes food-borne illness and its causes, as well as how to practice good personal hygiene and its impact on store image and profitability.

Information about the Distance Education Program can be obtained by telephone at (607) 255-3028; fax at (607) 254-5122; through e-mail at or by mail: Distance Education Program, 247 Warren Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853.