Class of 2025
Congratulations to the College of Art and Design's newest graduates! As the Class of 2025 gets set to make its creative mark on the world, we celebrate its ingenuity and countless accomplishments.
Animation by Tom Catalano '25 (film and animation BFA - animation option)
Congratulations to the Class of 2025! It’s been an honor to witness your growth during your time here. Take pride in your accomplishments and the personal and professional connections you’ve made. You have much to celebrate! You are joining the ranks of our incredible alumni. I look forward to what is next for all of you. Please stay in touch and go Tigers!
Todd Jokl
Dean
College of Art and Design
Delegates
Thevanamacha Conde (undergraduate)
Thevanamacha (they/them) recently graduated with a BFA in illustration, minor in digital business, and an immersion in women gender studies (WGST). Thevana’s academic excellence was maintained by achieving Dean’s List all years at RIT, blending visual storytelling, business, and social consciousness. Thevana’s strength in creative leadership landed them a position as the aesthetic lead for the RIT VR-based game "Changeling," developed by the School of Interactive Games and Media. With their minor in digital business, Thevana’s inquisitive spirit landed their work in the first student-led Illustration Showcase and a semester studying Africana historical arts in Florence, Italy. Thevana’s pursuit of artistic education led them to a position as an art teacher at Success Academy Charter School, a NYC-based school bridging the academic gap in underrepresented neighborhoods.
Zahra Babaei (graduate)
Zahra (photography and related media MFA) is an interdisciplinary artist whose work explores materiality, gendered invisibility, and the uncanny. She has served as a rare book archive assistant and photographer for RIT's Cary Graphic Arts Collection. In 2024, she worked as a teaching assistant for a Magnum Foundation workshop, and in 2025, she served as a teaching assistant for the Iranian Film History course at RIT, an experience that furthered her interest in cultural narratives. Her work has been featured in F-Stop Magazine, PhMuseum, Bazar Art Book Fair, Art Dubai Digital 2022, and Tropic Bound 2025, while her artist books are held in the special collections of Tufts University, SCAD, and RIT. Building on these experiences, Zahra will be pursuing the visual cultural studies Ph.D. program at the University of Rochester in the fall.
Profiles
Andrea Avendano Martinez (motion picture science; color science MS)
Kendall Dirks (3D digital design)
JamieLynn Gallagher (new media design)
Autumn Howard (interior design)
Colin O'Brien (production)
Emmanuel Okechukwu (ceramics MFA)
RIT in NYC program
Max Schaefer (motion picture science)
Nash Snyder (production)
Studio arts BFA students
Audrey Thompson (medical illustration)
Paige Wright (photographic sciences)
Angel Yang (visual communication design MFA)
Outstanding Alumnus
Kwaku Alston
RIT’s Outstanding Alumnus for 2024-2025 is Kwaku Alston ’94 (photography), who accepted the highest honor RIT can bestow upon a graduate during Academic Convocation! RIT President David Munson, right, and Alumni Association President Orlando Ortiz '04, '08 MBA presented the award during Academic Convocation. Kwaku is a Los-Angeles-based photographer and director who has photographed a who's who of celebrities — Beyoncé, Chadwick Boseman, Barack and Michelle Obama, and Brad Pitt to name a few.
Additionally, Kwaku gave the keynote address during the College of Art and Design commencement ceremony and hopped on the other side of the camera so faculty Clay Patrick McBride could take a tintype portrait of him.
Above photo by Carlos Ortiz
Photo legends make tintype portraits
Kwaku with Dean Todd Jokl
Photo by Elizabeth Lamark
Connect
Get Social
Share your decorated caps and commencement moments by tagging us on Instagram (@rit_artdesign) and using #RITgrad
Inspiring Words
Over the years, RIT has hosted renowned figures to deliver the Commencement keynote address
Picture Perfect
Capture the excitement of graduation by taking photos at hand-picked campus locations
Spring Exhibitions
Each spring, RIT's galleries and other locations showcase thesis and capstone work by graduating students across the College of Art and Design's wide portfolio of undergraduate and graduate programs. Below is a collection of highlights from spring exhibitions and screenings, as well as meetings with MFA candidates by visiting artist Corey Pemberton! *Hover over an image for photo credit.*
Photo credits: Skylier Grooms (photos 1-3); Rebecca Villagracia (4-7); Caitlyn Daproza (8); Shannon Lesch (9-15); Caillyn Daproza (16); Rebecca Villagracia (17-22); Caitlyn Daproza (23-28); Elizabeth Lamark (29-33): Mari Jaye Blanchard (34-35); John Monaco (36)
Awards
Faculty, students and staff across the College of Art and Design are annually honored with end-of-year awards. This year's honorees are:
Romano Prize
Shaun Foster
Professor, School of Design
The Frank J. Romano Prize for Publishing Entrepreneurship is given to a College of Art and Design faculty member/team who works with students to create innovative publications using new technologies and/or workflows.
Edline M. Chun Award
Kelly Jahn
Adjunct Faculty, School of Design
The Edline M. Chun Award for Outstanding Teaching and Service recognizes an adjunct faculty member who has shown excellence in teaching and provided exemplary service to their affiliated school and the college.
Outstanding Graduate Student Award
Deanna Moorehead
Film and Animation MFA
Awarded annually to an MFA or MST candidate in the College of Art and Design.
Provost's Innovative Teaching Award
Marissa Tirone
Principal Lecturer, School of Design
This university-wide award recognizes a faculty member who teaches in effective and innovative ways that improve the student educational experience.
Staff Recognition Award
Will Tracey
Operations Manager
The award recognizes a College of Art and Design staff member for their outstanding contributions within the college and RIT campus community.
Pfizenmaier Award
Emmitt White
Graphic Design student
Lorrie Frear (mentor)
Professor, School of Design
The Irene Pfizenmaier Award for Excellence in Graphic Expression is given each year to a student recipient, who selects a faculty mentor to share the honor with.
Photo by Jolie Greco
Gitner Family Prize
Munjal Yagnik
Associate Professor, School of Film and Animation
The award is given to a tenured or tenure-track faculty member in an area related to graphic communication who has been judged to have made an outstanding contribution to their profession.
Retirements
Don Arday
Professor, School of Art (24 years of service)
Deborah Beardslee
Associate Professor, School of Design (35 years of service)
Eileen Bushnell
Professor, School of Art (35 years of service)
Robert Dorsey
Professor, School of Art (35 years of service)
Glen Hintz
Associate Professor, School of Art (42 years of service)
Lorraine Justice
Professor, School of Design | Dean Emerita, College of Art and Design (14 years of service)
Dan Larkin
Associate Professor, School of Photographic Arts and Sciences (34 years of service)
Therese Mulligan
Professor, School of Photographic Arts and Sciences (26 years of service)
Michael Peres
Professor, School of Photographic Arts and Sciences (39 years of service)
