Photo Spotlights

On Friday, Dec. 12, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., the community is invited to leave their mark on RIT’s new digital graffiti wall, located in the SHED, room 1360. Using a custom computer mouse designed to look and function like a can of spray paint, participants can flex their artistic skills and enjoy respite during this busy time of year. Above, fourth-year ASL-English interpretation major Alison Maselek tests out the wall during a preview event. The experience is supported by RIT’s Center for World Building and Storytelling, College of Liberal Arts, College of Art and Design, and staff in the SHED. The wall will be on display at Imagine RIT 2026.

From left to right, RIT students Sarah Vaughan (biotechnology), Olivia Urtz (civil engineering technology), and Anne Ford (painting) help fill bags with grains for The Hunger Project on Nov. 18 in the Gordon Field House and Activities Center. The annual community service event had hundreds of students, faculty, and staff volunteer alongside U.S. Hunger to package 30,000 healthy meals for Foodlink and RIT’s FoodShare. More than 500,000 meals have been assembled and donated in the eight years of The Hunger Project.

RIT’s 14th annual Veterans Day Breakfast, held on Nov. 7, drew family members, students, and community members to the Gordon Field House and Activities Center. The event was sponsored by RIT’s Division of Government and Community Relations.

Students, faculty, and staff came together for Together RIT: Day of Dialogue on Oct. 24. Programming was held across campus to promote conversation on this year’s theme of caste, rank, and socioeconomic status.

Thousands of students, alumni, and their families attended dozens of events Oct. 17-19 during Brick City Homecoming and Family Weekend. Here, fans cheer on the men’s hockey team, which beat Clarkson University in front of a sold-out crowd at Blue Cross Arena in downtown Rochester.

Army and Air Force ROTC cadets held two remembrance events for those who died in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in 2001. Here, cadets participated in a memorial physical readiness training session on Sept. 10 outside the Gordon Field House and Activities Center. “Every step felt heavy, but I thought of the countless hours and unimaginable challenges faced by the (first responders) that day,” said Alyssa Knott, a second-year management information systems student. “That perspective gave me the strength to keep climbing in their honor.”

ROC the Pitch, the startup business pitch competition hosted by RIT’s Center for Urban Entrepreneurship, celebrated its fifth anniversary on Aug. 28. Three local startups and four student teams from RIT, University of Rochester, and St. John Fisher University competed in front of an audience and a panel of judges for more than $35,000 in prizes. EXP Studio, which provides affordable access to industry-standard resources, workshops, and workspaces, took home the grand prize. Pictured, from left to right, are Ebony Miller, director of RIT’s CUE; Antwan Russell and Alexis Russell, EXP Studio co-founders; and Assunta Davidson, CUE program manager.

The 16th cohort of Destler/Johnson Rochester City Scholars poses with RIT administrators and staff after the annual welcome ceremony held at Tait Preserve on Aug. 25.

RIT President Bill Sanders, left, welcomed incoming students and their families during the first day of Move-In on Aug. 17. Here, he helps Vickie Raghubar, a major from Latham, N.Y., right, and her father, Dave. Raghubar’s twin brother, Alex, is also an incoming student. 

A helicopter flies into campus to pick up a new air conditioning unit and deliver it to the roof of Gannett Hall on July 9.

Community members welcomed RIT President Bill Sanders on July 1, his first official day at RIT. Sanders arrived with his wife, Emily, and their Labradoodle, Ollie. “I am deeply honored to join this extraordinary community, and I already feel the energy that makes RIT so unique,” Sanders told the crowd.

RIT hosted the GENIUS Olympiad international competition for high-school students June 9-13. More than 975 students from 34 states and 69 countries participated in this year’s competition, presenting their projects in science, the arts, short film, coding, robotics, speech, engineering, design, and business development to panels of judges. GENIUS Olympiad, which was founded in 2011, promotes a global understanding of environmental issues and the achievement of sustainability. Here, three student teams test drive their robotics creations in the Gene Polisseni Center ahead of the competition.