Linda Robinson, Ph.D. Linda holds three degrees from Cornell - a B.S. in Design and Environmental Analysis and both an M.A. and a Ph.D in Development Sociology. While working on both her masters and doctorate, Linda focused her research on New York State agriculture looking first at farmer involvement in the development of the New York Agricultural Districts Program and then at cooperative marketing efforts in the New York wine grape industry. She is trained in both quantitative and qualitative research methods and holds a focus group moderator certificate of completion.

For the past three years, Linda served as program manager for the Cornell Office for Technology Access and Business Assistance (COTABA) an office of the Cornell Office of Economic Development. The purpose of COTABA is to assist university faculty, staff and students in the creation of start-up businesses based on Cornell technology. While at COTABA, Linda was involved with dozens of start-ups and offered assistance in all areas of business planning including writing business plans, identifying and securing venture capital, dealing with patent and licensing issues, and developing marketing strategies. COTABA also worked closely with a number of community-based economic development entities including Tompkins County Area Development, the Business Innovation Center and the Cayuga Venture Fund.

Before coming to Cornell, Linda was an Associate Professor of Marketing in the School of Business at Ithaca College. She taught a variety of courses including principles of marketing, consumer behavior, promotion management, and a seminar focused on issues involved in marketing to the aging baby-boom generation. Linda is an accomplished scholar having produced numerous publications and conference papers on a wide range of marketing topics.

Early in her career, Linda also worked in the private sector. She has experience as a sales account executive with a major demographic data firm, as a new product manager in the educational products industry, and as an administrator in both higher education and human services.

In her free time, Linda enjoys reading, hiking, cross-country skiing, sailing, gardeningand spending time with her 16 year old daughter, Rebecca.

Linda is looking forward to working with and getting to know all of the AEM 220 students.