From The Desk of Kareem J. Hayes

Hello, I serve as the Associate Director in the Center for Leadership and Civic Engagement. In my role, we offer a wide range of leadership training for students who are interested in learning more about leadership identities and competencies.

Leadership development is very important to me because it has shaped me into the leader I am today. I am passionate about developing leaders to solve the world’s biggest challenges. As a former student-athlete, I learned how to lead through service and action which has become a significant part of my leadership mantra. 

In addition to these trainings, I also chair the Community Impact Awards that takes place every spring to celebrate the accomplishments of our on-campus change makers, many of which are often student athletes.

My team oversees the growing portfolio of momentum leadership programs in which we collaborate with the student-athlete leadership series. Through this partnership, we discuss topics like communicating with teammates, stress management, and ways to handle conflict. We will be offering this program again this year, Monday, September 18th from 2:45 PM - 4:15 PM.

Student-athletes looking to register should connect with Olivia Winkfield, the associate director for athletics for compliance and student welfare! If you successfully complete the student-athlete leadership series, you progress through the other programs in momentum’s portfolio that are designed to introduce students to and cultivate the core competencies needed to step into key leadership roles on campus and in the Rochester community.

Any RIT teams or student-athletes who are looking for opportunities to add to their leadership toolkit, can consider participating in a Leadership Retreat or scheduling a customized LeaderShop training - please reach out to me and we will be happy to setup an appointment. 

Be on the lookout for more information regarding our Fall and Spring semester service projects including momentum II and III, Leadership Retreat, and LeaderShop.

Kareem J. Hayes

Greetings From RIT Women's Soccer

­RIT Women’s Soccer took an overseas trip to England last May following. We arrived in London and were met by our tour guide, Stuart, who accompanied the team and led us through a packed itinerary of sightseeing, football training and matches, and a tour of England.

Foreign tours as a team are always fruitful; the team gets to experience one another in a new context and bond in ways that are not possible during the busy academic year. Previously, the team traveled to Barcelona in 2013 and Costa Rica in 2017. After a two-year delay due to COVID, we finally were able to travel overseas and reap the amazing benefits of traveling as a team.

When one of our matches got canceled, the tour company found us a last-minute game against Brighton and Hove Albion, a Premier League club. Coming into the training grounds, the facilities and professionalism blew us away. The first-team were just finishing training, and we met many players who competed in the Women’s World Cup this summer. We took the field to play against Brighton’s U23 team, and we definitely had some nerves as we watched them warm up. We had tremendous focus and intensity, as well as a clear game plan. The game was evenly matched, and we were able to come away with a 2-1 win.

Off the field, the team adventured through Windsor, London, Stratford-Upon-Avon (William Shakespeare’s idyllic hometown), and Liverpool. Our second football highlight was the Manchester United versus Manchester City Women’s Super League match on our last night in England. Much of the teams were made up of the English National Team who competed in the World Cup Final, so it goes without saying that the play on the field was nothing short of magical!

When we got home, we started preseason with some Beatles music and some activities we did while in England. We grew very close as a team, that couldn’t have been possible without the help of generous alumni, parents, and fans.

Liz Masterson – RIT Women’s Soccer

Greetings From RIT Women's Volleyball

Hello! The 2023 season is well underway. We have nine returners and eight newcomers comprising our roster. This is arguably our deepest team in quite some time. That depth has allowed us to use multiple lineups early this season. We hope that this versatility will provide us several options to be successful in any scenario that will occur this fall.

We’re confident that we will continue to trust our “growth mindset” during that development. The team expects to be competing for the Liberty League Championship this November. “Tut” (assistant coach John Tuttle) and I are so excited to continue to experience the growth of this team throughout the remainder of this season and the future.

Also, in a time of reflection, it has been 30 years since RIT finished third at the NCAA Tournament. Most of that 1993 team was part of two previous teams that ended their season with a heartbreaking loss in the NCAA Tournament. The focus and work ethic that they brought to practice every day was inspiring. Their attention to detail during each match was unreal.

We played at a high level whether it was against a ranked opponent or not. They seemed to be on a mission. After losing an emotional semifinal match to eventual national champion Washington (MO), we returned to win a thrilling third-place match against UC San Diego. Remembering the emotions of that group on that day and the satisfaction that they had winning the last match of the season still brings back wonderful memories of that team and their commitment.

Back to this year. We are looking forward to having alumni, family and friends on campus. We hope to see many of you during Brick City Weekend, as well as any of our numerous other home dates.

Please, let us know if you’ll be on campus or attending any of our away tournaments. We look forward to catching up soon!

Jim Lodes – RIT Women’s Volleyball