Norman Porticella

Dr. Porticella studies public engagement in science; health communication; community science capacity; informal STEM learning; automatic goal processes; and psychology of media. He manages all data collection associated with the (Mobile) Media Effects Lab. He earned his Ph.D. degree in Communication with a concentration in Social and Personality Psychology from Cornell University and his B.A. in Sociology and Film Studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Prior to joining the Department of Communication, Dr. Porticella worked with the Program Development and Evaluation team at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology where he built evaluation tools for the field of Citizen Science.

Outreach and Extension

Dr. Porticella is the founding coordinator for ScienceHub, an organization intended to enhance community capacity for utilizing science resources to address community issues. Working closely with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County, the initial Tompkins County branch will serve as a mechanism to tie a diverse community together, leverage its shared knowledge and resources, and advance a community-wide vision of science capacity. It will also serve as a research platform through which to build understanding about community science capacity. As Department Extension Leader, Dr. Porticella also facilitates and documents faculty extension and outreach activities.

Teaching

While currently focused on research and outreach activities, he has taught Cases in Communication; Communication, Environment, Science, and Health; New Media and Society; Science Writing for Media; and Visual Communication.