News

Noon on Sept. 28 marks the kickoff of this year’s 18th annual ROAR Day, which provides an opportunity for members of the RIT community to support their favorite parts of the university. Gifts made during ROAR Day fund the future of RIT across every college as well as athletics, diversity and inclusion, performing arts, scholarships, and more.

Alumni brewers, winemakers, and cidermakers from 10 businesses will be on hand to answer questions and provide samples at the second annual RIT Alumni Oktoberfest on Oct. 14.

Christopher Collison was appointed to the Jane King Harris Endowed Professorship and Emmett Ientilucci was selected for the Gerald W. Harris Endowed Professorship by College of Science Dean Andre Hudson. RIT alumnus Jeffrey Harris ’75 (photographic science and instrumentation) and his partner, Joyce Pratt, established the professorships in 2022 with a generous gift in honor of Harris’s parents, the namesakes of the positions.

Alumni from RIT’s photography programs joined forces to create a new film, Blue Hour: The Disappearance of Nick Brandreth, now streaming on Amazon Prime.

Former Saturday Night Live cast member Melissa Villaseñor and Hank Green, an internet icon, are scheduled to appear at RIT’s Brick City Homecoming and Family Weekend in October. Villaseñor got her start as a semi-finalist on America’s Got Talent. Green began making YouTube videos about science in 2007 and now has a social media following of more than 20 million.

Alumnus John Dahms ’71 remembers the photo scavenger hunt of 1970, where he and a team of other photo science students were tasked with uncovering the identity of an unmarked roll of color movie film and which film processing chemistry to use. Unforgettable learning experiences like that have been the driving force behind Dahms’ desire to give back to RIT.

A former top NASA administrator told graduates of RIT that their futures may seem as ambiguous as outer space. But by daring to do mighty things with hope instead of fear, untold possibilities will come into focus. Thomas Zurbuchen, astrophysicist and the longest continually serving associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate in NASA’s history, addressed the crowd during today's Academic Convocation ceremony in the Gordon Field House. More than 4,800 RIT graduates, including those attending RIT’s global campuses in China, Croatia, Dubai, and Kosovo, were recognized.

RIT is honoring Austin McChord as Outstanding Alumnus for 2022-2023. The award, presented during Academic Convocation on May 12, is the highest honor the university can bestow upon alumni in recognition of professional accomplishments as well as service and generosity to the university.

Forbes features Sean Petterson '13 (industrial design), CEO of StrongArm Technologies.

Fierce Biotech features healthcare technology firm Casana, founded by alumnus Nick Conn. RIT Trustee Austin McChord is CEO of the company that makes a smart toilet seat that measures heart rate and oxygen saturation.

The Futurists Symposium, a collection of RIT alumni tapped to present an insider’s look into the future of industry as it relates to technology, the arts, and design, was held during the April 29 Imagine RIT: Creativity and Innovation Festival.

Accomplished alumni are returning to campus to discuss the future of technology, the arts, and design as part of the Imagine RIT: Creativity and Innovation Festival on April 29.