January 2025

Accomplishments from Saunders Students

• Nine Saunders students have been inducted into Chi Alpha Sigma, a national society that celebrates student-athletes who have excelled in both the classroom and in athletics. The students are Isaac Braegelmann, Joey Golden IV, Seth Grottenthaler, Bailey Kehl, Tyler Mahan, Sarah Polek, Ian Reeve, Emily Sanchez, and Douglas Scott. Peggy Tirrell, senior associate director for graduate programs and admissions at Saunders, delivered the keynote speech "Lessons Learned From Powerlifting."

• Saunders College of Business student delegates for 2025 are Chris Soukup ‘25 (EMBA), graduate delegate, and Annie Hong ‘25 (management information systems), undergraduate delegate. They will represent Saunders at the 2025 convocation and commencement ceremonies.

• Ben Hart ‘25 (MBA), founder of RIT’s Real Estate Club, participated in RIT’s Summer Accelerator program through the Simone Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and won the People’s Choice award in the Center for Urban Entrepreneurship’s ROC the Pitch competition.

• Frank D. Cammarata ‘25 (management information systems and global business management) led a team of students that won the ROC The Project competition, organized by PMI Rochester. His team–including Julia Geigel ‘24 (MBA), Yusra Khalid ‘25 (MS computer science) and Fanny Qian ‘28 (management information systems)–assisted Coffee Connection/Project Empower to plan their fundraising event.

Learn more about these accomplishments and read previous months online.

Saunders Faculty and Staff Go Above and Beyond

• Molly McGowan, co-director of RIT Executive Education, and Natasha House, assistant director for Diversity Initiatives in Career Services and Cooperative Education, appeared on WXXI’s Connections with Evan Dawson on Jan. 7. They discussed Leadership Rochester’s upcoming symposium and shared insights from their work in developing future leaders.

• Ali Tosyali, Ph.D., assistant professor in the department of MIS, marketing, and analytics, has published a co-authored article, “Explainable Artificial Intelligence for Mental Disorder Screening: A Computational Design Science Approach, " in the Journal of Management Information Systems. The paper introduces MDscan, a scanning tool that combines explainable AI and a ShapRadiation algorithm to create interpretable diagnostic images.

• Jacquie Mozrall, Ph.D., dean of Saunders College and professor, was a featured guest on Greater Rochester Enterprise’s Make Your Mark podcast. Dean Mozrall spoke about how Saunders is doubling in size, which will support new event spaces that will host distinguished speakers, career fairs, and networking events for students, and about how this expansion will continue to prepare students to manage and lead technical organizations and drive business solutions.

Learn more about these accomplishments and read previous months online.

Alumni News and Recognitions

• Lys Luzolo ‘25 (marketing) was featured on a Spectrum News segment on TikTok, where she is an influencer. The segment explores the ways in which influencers are affected by the TikTok ban.

• Riya Bhanushali ‘24 (MS accounting and business analytics) has joined EFPR Group, Rochester, NY, as a staff accountant in their Attest Department.

• Parth Chaudhari ‘24 (MS business analytics) has been selected as a research assistant as part of Saunders College Student Research Initiative (SRI). He will work with mentor Sriniwas Mahapatro, Ph.D., assistant professor in the department of finance and accounting.

• Parker Hoyt ‘24 (marketing) began a digital marketing content co-op with LInden Digital Marketing in January 2025.

Learn more about these accomplishments and read previous months online.

We want to feature you! Students, alumni, faculty, and staff — share your news with your Saunders community by emailing us at communications@saunders.rit.edu.

News

• Saunders College of Business has partnered with the Rochester Americans to offer RIT students, faculty, staff, and alumni discounted tickets to 2024-25 regular season Amerks and Knighthawks home games! To secure season-long deals on tickets and concessions, use code "RIT" when you visit this link.

• Saunders College of Business relaunches student incubator program. Formerly known as the RIT Student Accelerator, the Bernard Kozel Startup Program @ Saunders aims to empower students across all majors at RIT by offering hands-on learning experiences, networking opportunities, and strategic mentorship from RIT advisers, industry experts, and investors.

• William H. Sanders named RIT's 11th president. The dean of Carnegie Mellon’s College of Engineering is praised for his research credentials, success in global partnerships and entrepreneurship, and strong student engagement. He starts at RIT July 1.

• RIT Executive MBA degree program among nation's best as ranked by U.S. News & World Report. The 2025 U.S. News & World Report Best Online Programs rankings, released this week, listed Saunders College of Business’ online Executive MBA program as No. 11 in the nation for “Best Online MBA Programs.”

• Poets&Quants ranks Saunders' MBA among top 10% of U.S. programs for 2024-25. In its 15th annual list, Poets&Quants ranked Saunders among the top 100 MBA programs for 2024-25, moving it up to #92 from #98 last year. This ranking places Saunders among the top 10% of all business schools in the country.

See these and past news online.

Media Coverage

• A practical way to modernize midcentury academic spaces for today’s learners. University Business Magazine highlights the stunning transformation of Max Lowenthal Hall – home to RIT's Saunders College of Business.

Recap of Events

• Saunders College of Business Lunar New Year Celebration. Students, faculty, and staff experienced RIT's cultural diversity through performances, New Year games, and by savoring exotic flavors from international cuisines. 

Upcoming Events

• MBA & Grad Chat: Ask Me Anything. February 12 at 5:30 p.m.

• Women in Business Charity Gala. February 13 at 5 p.m.

• Saunders College of Business Graduation Fair: February 19 and 20 at 10 a.m.

• Power Your Potential - Women's Leadership Conference: February 28 at 8 a.m.

See these and upcoming events online.

Experience our newly opened state-of-the-art building expansion and renovation!