News

Meet Shine DeHarder, this year’s Student Government president. DeHarder, who served on RIT’s Community Readiness committee this summer to help the university reopen for students, has three main goals as Student Government president: reducing food insecurity on campus; improving diversity, inclusion, and accessibility on campus; and improving transparency between Student Government and the student body.

The unexpected transition to remote learning during the spring semester challenged faculty across RIT to experiment, create, and deploy new methods of instruction to ensure student success. As the university gears up for in-person and online classes—or a combination of both—faculty members are applying a wide range of lessons learned from the spring to keep academic momentum moving forward in the fall.

Douglas Merrill, who inspired countless students during his 40-year tenure in the College of Science and the College of Health Sciences and Technology, has retired. He developed the Premedical Advisory Program and created the Center for Bioscience Education and Technology. And he retires with numerous honors recognizing his outstanding teaching and commitment to diversity and inclusion.

RIT is requiring all students, faculty, and staff to monitor their health for COVID-19 symptoms. The new policy will help protect the health and safety of the community at RIT and in the Greater Rochester area during the ongoing pandemic. Starting July 27, the university will launch the RIT Daily Health Screen website and call-in option.

RIT unveiled two plans that outline the actions that the university and its individual community members must take for a safe, productive, and meaningful Fall 2020 semester.

As the RIT community prepares to return to campus this fall, an environment of physical distancing and reduced classroom occupancies has added a new component to the course scheduling process. Throughout the summer, every college has worked to rebuild the fall schedule to accommodate the unique requirements of the fall semester.

Richard Doolittle has been named interim dean of RIT’s College of Health Sciences and Technology, effective immediately. Doolittle has a long history with RIT’s health care programs, and he has served as vice dean of CHST for nearly a decade.

President David Munson reports on the progress in RIT's preparations to reopen for fall semester.

RIT's “Workplace Safety Plan in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic” focuses on the health and safety of our faculty, staff, student employees, visitors, and other invited guests, and is aligned with applicable local, state, and federal laws.

RIT is hosting a virtual event to raise money for the COVID-19 Emergency Fund, Division of Diversity and Inclusion General Support Fund, and other funds that directly impact students. "Tigers Helping Tigers: An Event to Move Students Forward" will include pre-recorded performances from RIT students and student groups and will be streamed online.

President David Munson and Provost Ellen Granberg are announcing an accelerated fall academic calendar, with the semester beginning Aug. 19, all in-person classes concluding by Nov. 24 and final examinations to be administered online.

Founded by a group of RIT Alumni, the grassroots organization looks to put homemade masks and other protective equipment in the hands of Western New York front line workers.