Jason Koski/University Photography

Professors Jeff Hancock, left, and Garrick Blalock have been named house professor-deans on West Campus.

Next fall, students living in William Keeton House may be using mobile phone apps to let other residents know where they are in the house. Or they may use apps to join a virtual study group of students within 100 feet.

"We'll be looking at bringing various types of social media into the house as a way to enhance the physical community," said Jeffrey Hancock, associate professor of communication and chair of the Department of Information Science.

That's one of the many ideas he and Garrick Blalock, associate professor of applied economics and management, have been kicking around as they get ready to become house professor-deans on West Campus.

Blalock will move to Flora Rose House with his wife, Kaori, and their two children, ages 6 and 3; he will succeed Shirley Samuels, professor of English and American studies. Hancock will live in Keeton House with his wife, Aimee Woodruff, and their 15-month-old daughter; he will take over from Jefferson Cowie, associate professor of labor history.

"In our interviews, Jeff and Garrick impressed us with their thoughtful and creative understanding of undergraduate education and the student experience," said Laura Brown, vice provost for undergraduate education. "They are unusually innovative and engaged colleagues who will be terrific assets as we continue to build universitywide initiatives in support of undergraduate education."

Blalock's research centers on the adoption of new technology in developing economies. He is currently conducting field experiments to increase the use of energy-saving, clean-burning wood cookstoves in Uganda. He teaches managerial economics, has won the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Teaching Excellence, and mentors students outside of the classroom in research settings. He is also adviser to the men's varsity and club tennis teams. Blalock has lived and worked in Japan, and brings experience abroad to the advisement of students. He is the faculty adviser to the Japanese Graduate Students and Scholars Association.

Hancock focuses his research on examining social interactions mediated by information and communication technology, with an emphasis on how people produce and understand language in these contexts. He has won a Provost's Award for Distinguished Scholarship and the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching. Hancock has been a North Campus faculty fellow and a house fellow at Keeton House. And he mentors a large number of undergraduate students in his research lab.

Blalock sees one of his roles as bringing Cornell's service learning programs and other "intellectual riches" to West Campus. "The programming is already there. The challenge is how to best integrate these opportunities into West Campus, through faculty fellows, in-house courses and meals, for example," he said.

Hancock and Ethan Stephenson, Keeton House assistant dean, envision a service-learning course taught at Keeton House, through which students could volunteer at the Ithaca Children's Garden and learn about such local issues as sustainability, health and food security. He may also create a house award for the most active volunteers.

The house professor-deans also want to encourage student interactions with local and visiting scholars. Hancock will continue Conversations at Keeton, hosting an expert in his apartment to discuss a topic of interest to students, and is looking into facilitating dinners for a handful of students in the homes of house fellows (faculty and other experts on campus who are affiliated with the house), Hancock said.

Blalock and Jarrett Anthony, assistant dean of Flora Rose House, envision partnering with such Cornell resources as the Institute for the Social Sciences, which brings leading scholars to campus. "The opportunity here is to expose students to all kinds of things, whether it be research in ornithology or new books," Blalock said.

A forum for intellectual inquiry is only one of the benefits West Campus offers, Hancock said. "I think of this community as not just another place to do work but rather a place where there's some stress relief, there are friends, there is food, there is some relaxation, as well."