Sentinel Society | Giving to RIT

Join the community of philanthropists to
invest in the future of RIT
and make a difference today.

Photo of the Sentinel statue on RIT campus.

The Sentinel Society recognizes a community of leadership donors who make a meaningful annual investment in the university.

Together, these donors play a pivotal role in providing funding for student scholarships and RIT’s most pressing and immediate needs. Sentinel members provide direct budget-relief, allowing RIT to be nimble as we fulfill emergent student scholarship needs, seize educational opportunities, and support strategic initiatives and student life.

Members of the Sentinel Society champion the creativity and innovation that has become the hallmark of an RIT education, providing funding that enables the university to meet pressing needs across campus and award scholarships to talented students.

As a Sentinel Society member, you will also enjoy the following benefits:

Receive invitations to exclusive in-person and virtual experiences
Opportunities to engage with faculty and university leadership
Access to a community of like-minded philanthropists
Receive exclusive membership communications
Early registration to select events
Recognition in our online Sentinel Honor Roll

You can complete your pledge online or download a form and mail it to the address provided.

For more Sentinel Society member news, visit the past Sentinel Society Member Newsletters:

Membership Levels

By becoming a Sentinel donor, you will make a direct, immediate and substantial impact on our students. Recognition in RIT’s premier annual giving society is granted to those who make a five year pledge to a Sentinel Society eligible fund, in an area of the university they feel most passionate about. Members are recognized in our online honor roll at the following annual gift levels:

Annual Gift	Recognition Level
$50,000+	Visionaries
$25,000-$49,999	Innovators
$10,000-$24,999	Collaborators
$5,000-$9,999	Investors
$2,500-$4,999	Champions
$1,000-$2,499	Members
$500-$999	Entrepreneurs*
	*Current students and graduates of the last decade.

Create a Sentinel Scholarship

With a pledge of $5,000 or more annually for five years, you can create a scholarship in your name or in the name of someone you wish to honor. A full 100% of your gift will benefit the student scholarship awardee.

By creating a Sentinel Scholarship, you will have the opportunity to:

Support one or more students over five years

Assist a student in your choice of college

Learn about your student awardee(s)

Download the scholarship pledge form to create a named Sentinel Scholarship at the $25,000 level or higher.

Impact Areas

RIT Fund (formerly Area of Greatest Need)

Sentinel gifts to the RIT Fund provide the critical resources necessary for RIT to meet its most immediate needs. Endowment spending only covers about four percent of the annual operating budget but truly unrestricted support provides university leadership the flexibility to prioritize the needs of our students. Unrestricted gifts provide resources that allow university leadership to take advantage of unanticipated academic and student life opportunities, make life-changing international experiences accessible, offer powerful career building and research programs, and react to numerous unforeseen challenges our students face.

Athletics

Annual donor support helps RIT attract and retain the best student-athletes, while meeting the growing demands of the intercollegiate athletic program. Gifts help fund post-game meals for teams, training equipment for the Tiger Power Den, training apparel for all athletes, team travel, athletic training services, and facility enhancements. RIT’s unrivaled intercollegiate athletic programs play an essential role in teaching students to conduct themselves with honesty and integrity, make sacrifices, strive for excellence, and persevere through adversity, while developing a commitment to teamwork and service to the community. Each year, 675 student-athletes participate on 24 varsity athletic teams, over 2,300 students participate in intramurals, and thousands attend sporting events and wellness classes.

College of Art and Design

The College of Art and Design provides countless opportunities that extend the educational experience outside the classroom. Annual gifts to the college support students as they pursue cooperative education and internships, international experiences, and help fund multi-disciplinary projects and travel to conferences and workshops. Thesis and capstone exhibitions in RIT Galleries provide students the ability to present their work in dynamic, professional settings. Faculty and students from various departments collaborate on sponsored research and independent study projects in a wide variety of disciplines, from typography and film, to interactive gaming, 3D design and the preservation of images and cultural heritage.

College of Engineering Technology

CET students learn to lead, create, innovate, and apply technology to resolve problems. Annual donor support funds capstone and senior design projects, allowing students to adapt, grow and succeed as they immediately apply what they are learning in the classroom to the real world. Give students the opportunity to conduct research in robotics, electronics, materials, and metrology. Donor support offers a strong foundation for their future and help them to transform the world around them.

College of Health Sciences and Technology

Experiential learning includes clinical rotations, co-ops, internships, study abroad, faculty-led excursions, and research. Students receive hands-on clinical experience in hospital-based and ambulatory patient care settings. Gifts from Sentinel members give students the ability to pursue experiences outside of the classroom by providing stipends and material support. Putting theory into practice gives undergraduate students a strong foundation for their future.

College of Liberal Arts

Annual leadership gifts to the College of Liberal Arts provide support for student research and travel awards for conferences and global experiences. By funding innovative and experiential learning opportunities, donors help ensure that students benefit from a rigorous liberal arts education that encourages innovative approaches to learning, active scholarship and research, the highest ethical standards, and the educational and social benefits of diversity and global awareness.

College of Science

Students have regular hands-on experiences in class and labs, access to internships and co-op opportunities with employers, and year-round research opportunities. Annual donor support provides funding for students to participate in active research areas. Faculty invite students to be part of their research groups, providing unparalleled opportunities to gain hands-on experience solving exciting problems. Summer undergraduate research fellowships provide students a stipend to work on targeted research projects.

Diversity and Inclusion

DEI programs enhance access and success for historically underrepresented students, faculty and staff. Along with supporting education and scholarship, donor support helps RIT ensure a welcoming, inclusive, vibrant and accessible environment for everyone. Annual gifts provide funding for campus-wide educational programming, and students are able to participate in a variety of clubs and activities that foster academic success, increase retention, and develop successful leaders of tomorrow.

Golisano College of Computing and Information Sciences

Gifts from Sentinel members provide support for student research, entrepreneurship activities, and student teams involved in community service initiatives and competitions. Annual gifts support student projects in disciplines ranging from game design to interactive online platforms to groundbreaking cybersecurity research. Unrestricted support gives GCCIS students the opportunity to participate in professional international conferences.

Golisano Institute for Sustainability

Students enrolled in degree programs obtain the foundational knowledge and hands-on, problem-solving experience they need to make a difference in any career. Annual donor support provides stipends for travel and research, experiential learning opportunities, and fees for conferences and workshops. Students learn in more than 84,000 square feet of labs and testbeds alongside expert technicians and faculty, with the shared goal of creating a better, more sustainable, future for the world around us.

Graduate Education

Gifts help fund the annual Graduate Education Week and Showcase, allowing students to share their intellectual achievements with the world. Donor support provides students the opportunity to present scholarly or creative work at a juried conference, purchase lab materials for research projects, or support a public exhibition of their work. Graduate students are able to develop lasting partnerships within the RIT and Rochester communities through campus programming, professional workshops, and social events.

Kate Gleason College of Engineering

Through cooperative education, international study, undergraduate research, service learning, and multidisciplinary senior design projects, students are equipped to join the work force as skilled, competent, and experienced engineers. Annual donor support provides material support for student projects and competitive teams, as well as research and travel stipends for students conducting groundbreaking research in their fields of interest.

Libraries

Wallace Library provides a creative environment for learning and is a space of constant discovery. Annual support enables the Library to establish new programs, acquire new materials, renovate spaces, and respond to emerging needs of students and academic programs. Each year, the library offers over 700 workshops and instructional sessions and lends over 21,000 books and media and 14,000 laptops to students. The library functions as a living laboratory where students can practically apply what they learn in the classroom to solve real-world problems.

MAGIC Center

With a focus on Media, Arts, Games, Interaction, and Creativity, MAGIC blurs the lines between art and technology. Gifts to MAGIC provide funding to host and mentor individual students and teams pursuing their unique entrepreneurial interests. Students learn from world-class curriculum and use cutting edge technologies to create new solutions amid the convergence of digital media disciplines.

National Technical Institute for the Deaf

Annual Sentinel gifts help the National Technical Institute for the Deaf provide a college experience unlike anywhere else. No other university in the world provides better support for deaf and hard-of-hearing students, with 90% of students receiving financial assistance. NTID scholarship recipients express gratitude for being able to attend a university with a national reputation, while being part of an inclusive community that nurtures and guides their journey.

Performing Arts

By combining the constantly innovative nature of technology with traditional art and performance, RIT is breaking new ground in the realm of artistic experience. Students also get involved behind the scenes, with set design, sound, and lighting crews. Each year, roughly 2,000 students participate in performance groups and activities, and student performers come from all nine RIT colleges. Performing arts scholarships and student support funds give students the opportunity to hone their skills while pursuing a multitude of degree programs across campus.

Saunders College of Business

Offer students educational experiences beyond the classroom, giving them the foundation they need to become the leaders of tomorrow. Annual Sentinel support funds student clubs and research projects. Funds also support Student Accelerator and Tiger Tank teams, nurturing entrepreneurial thinking and providing real-world opportunities for students to develop solutions. The experiences made possible by annual leadership donors allow Saunders graduates the ability to differentiate themselves successfully, and stand out within a crowded job market.

Scholarships and Financial Aid

The promise of a scholarship can literally change someone’s life. RIT’s commitment to affordability helps us attract the brightest minds, regardless of their socioeconomic status. Each year, 94% of full-time undergraduate students receive over $340 million in financial assistance. Gifts from Sentinel members transform aspirations into achievements, enabling students to benefit from the life-changing experience of an RIT education.

School of Individualized Study

Sentinel gifts support students’ ability to study abroad, attend conferences, and conduct research projects domestically and internationally. These experiential learning opportunities are key to a well-rounded education and being prepared for the global workplace. Donor support funds material costs associated with required senior capstone and research projects, providing students the ability to use their creativity and expertise to develop unique projects that align with their academic and professional goals.

Simone Center

The Simone Center offers an interdisciplinary curriculum that helps students learn as they advance and realize their own ideas and projects. Donor funding supports coaching, mentorship and incubator programs, team and individual project support, and access to The Construct student makerspace. Events and competitions like IdeaLab and Tiger Tank provide students the ability to advance their business ideas through teamwork, coaching, and real-world experiences.

Student Life

Student Life programs build a sense of community on campus. Each year, annual donor support creates opportunities for thousands of students to participate in intramural activities and clubs, attend movies and guest lectures, join volunteer efforts on campus and in the Rochester community, participate in wellness classes, and receive academic support services. Students often cite the wide variety of campus activities and the inclusive community as their favorite things about attending RIT.

For additional information on how to become a Sentinel Society member, please contact us. Our team is available to provide further clarification and assistance, and can be reached by phone at 585-475-5500 or toll-free at 1-800-477-0376, or by email at sentinelsociety@rit.edu. We welcome the opportunity to answer any questions you may have and assist you in making a meaningful impact through your giving to RIT.