Photo Spotlights

RIT’s Community Garden, a grassroots project begun last year by RIT employees and students, kicks off its growing season today. Activities are planned until 1 p.m. near U Lot, just south of the tennis courts.

For his successful business efforts, William K. Pollock, founder, CEO and president of Optimation Technology, was named recipient of the 2010 Herbert W. Vanden Brul Entrepreneurial Award by RIT’s E. Philip Saunders College of Business. He was honored during a luncheon at Oak Hill Country Club on April 22.

Mark Mikolajczyk, president and publisher of Florida Today, and a 1983 graduate of RIT, received the 2010 Isaiah Thomas Award on April 21. Presented by RIT’s School of Print Media, the award is named after one of America’s great patriot printers and recognizes outstanding contributions to the publishing industry. Florida Today is part of the U.S. Community Publishing Division of Gannett Co. Inc. Mikolajczyk is the 26th recipient of the award.

Zeta Tau Alpha hosted a yogurt eating contest to support breast cancer education on April 20. 30 participants gobbled several containers of yogurt in a timed session. Three winners received gift cards and everyone got a pink towel to clean up with.

Neuroscientist Christopher deCharms, a pioneer in the development of real-time magnetic resonance imaging or fMRI, discussed the use of the technology in diagnosis, pain management and the treatment of disease April 19 at RIT. The presentation, “Imagine, Imaging your Own Brain,” was part of the Caroline Werner Gannett Project’s Visionaries in Motion Series.

The building is under wraps, but construction is moving along on the Vignelli Center for Design Studies. Construction is expected to be completed on the four-story facility at the end of May, with an official dedication scheduled for September. The Vignelli Center will house the entire archive of renowned designers Massimo and Lella Vignelli, whose graphic and product designs are icons of international design.

Peter Lovenheim, author and adjunct professor of English at RIT, tried to connect more deeply with his community by sleeping over at his neighbors’ homes. A book on his experiences, In the Neighborhood, came out in April and the film rights have been optioned by Julia Roberts’ production company Red Om Films.

Undergraduate students from universities across the country presented their research projects in public relations, advertising, new media and journalism at RIT’s 2010 Conference for Undergraduate Research in Communication April 14. The annual event is sponsored by the Department of Communication. Here, RIT fourth-year student Marlana Yacci discussed her study Credibility and Opinion Leadership and their Effects on Facebook Marketing Communications.

Members of RIT’s Commencement Committee discuss plans for the 2010 celebration. The committee meets regularly to discuss logistics associated with executing the annual event. This year’s commencement, May 21-22, is highlighted by a keynote presentation by CBS News veteran anchorman Bob Schieffer.

Area high school students were on campus for the fourth annual Youth Workforce Innovations Conference on April 7. Students participated in hands-on workshops in optics, alternative energy, biotechnology and the hospitality industry. Students in the biotechnology workshop joined Doug Merrill, professor and director of the Center for Bioscience Education and Technology, to learn more about the intricacies of heart muscles.

Snoop Dogg performed April 10 at Gordon Field House. Later in the performance, Snoop Dogg waved an RIT hockey jersey, in honor of the Frozen Four men’s hockey team.

Waving orange pompoms and carrying signs, hundreds of RIT hockey fans welcomed home their tenacious Tigers during a Friday afternoon on-campus rally. The RIT Men’s Hockey team made its first-ever debut in the NCAA Division I Frozen Four in Detroit April 8. RIT lost 8-1 to the Wisconsin Badgers. It was a storybook season for the Tigers who set several school records, including most wins (28), longest winning streak (12) and fewest goals allowed per game (2.18).