From the NTID President's Office - January 2024 | National Technical Institute for the Deaf

January 2024

Happy 2024 and welcome to spring semester! Always a busy and special time with events such as Imagine RIT (April 27) and Commencement weekend (May 10 and 11), this spring is all the more so as excitement builds for the April 8 Total Solar Eclipse, with Rochester and our campus directly in the “Path of Totality.” Watch for announcements on how RIT and NTID will commemorate this rare occasion.

In the meantime, stay warm and thank you for all you do to make our students’ college experience meaningful.

Gerry

Academic Affairs leadership appointments

Gary Behm and I are pleased to announce the following appointments within the NTID Academic Affairs division, effective January 16, 2024.

Matthew Dye, professor, has accepted the position of associate dean of research for a three-year term, with possible re-appointment thereafter. Dr. Dye will serve as NTID’s leader and main point of contact for all research-related issues facing the college.
Erin Auble, has accepted the position of interim chairperson of the NTID Performing Arts Department. This is a one-year appointment with possible extension.

Please congratulate our colleagues as they begin their new career paths and lead NTID into the future. I look forward to working closely with each of them and their departments for the enhancement of our faculty, staff and student success.

Many thanks to the respective search committees and the faculty and staff who participated in the interview and review processes.

Government Relations update

Submitted by Heather Eaggleston

FY 24 federal funding bills have not been passed. As of this writing, a continuing resolution, which would continue NTID’s funding at the FY 23 rate until March 8, is on its way to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law. The continuing resolution, or “CR,” gives lawmakers roughly six weeks or so to determine FY 24 funding for the Department of Education and other departments and agencies (some of which will be under a CR until March 1).

Both the Senate’s FY 24 draft bill and the House’s FY 24 draft bill funded NTID at the same level as FY 23 – $92.5M. Therefore, we do not expect an increase in FY 24. However, we also cannot assume that we will not receive a cut in FY 24. The overall amount of money to fund non-defense discretionary departments and programs, like NTID, is lower than last year, and the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 has a provision that will trigger across-the-board cuts to most programs, including NTID, if FY 24 funding bills for all programs have not been passed by April 30.

We will continue to talk to our contacts in Congress to stress the importance of passing FY 24 bills and remind them of the good work you all do and the positive outcomes we see for our students. NTID has a strong tradition of being careful stewards of the resources provided to us by Congress. As the nation deals with multiple funding challenges over the next few years, we ask that you continue this tradition. We will send out a communication as soon as our FY 24 funding has been finalized.

Outreach news

Submitted by Charles McFadden

A full slate of Outreach activities are planned for spring and summer 2024:

High School students

Career Exploration Series – spring 2024 presentations and dates are set, but not yet uploaded to website
- 1/25 -- Benefits of Knowing ASL (Marguerite Carrillo)
- 2/22 -- Why Bridges Use I-beams, but Corn Stalks are Round (Marriner Merrill)
- 3/21 -- Animation/Motion Graphics through Illustration and Technology (Ernest Roszkowski)
- 4/11 -- Blood and Rh factor typing (Liz Ayers)
Digital Arts, Film, and Animation Competition with March 15 submission deadline
SpiRIT Writing Competition with March 15 submission deadline
Next Big Idea with April 25-27 on campus competition
Tiger Gaming League with May 2-4 on campus competition
EYF
- Session 1: July 6-11
- Session 2: July 13-18
Financial Wizards – July 6 -11
Advanced Tech Careers – July 13-18
Health Care Careers Exploration Program – July 20-25

Middle School students

Math Competition with March 22-24 on-campus competition.
Tiger Science Challenge – Dates TBD
Tech Tigers – July 20-25

Research update

Submitted by Laurie Furibondo

Please join the Office of the Associate Dean of Research (OADR) team in welcoming our new Sr. Staff Specialist, Dionne Bash.

Dionne comes to us from the Tobyhanna Army Depot in Pennsylvania where she was an EEO Assistant. As an NTID graduate and with 16 years administrative experience, Dionne brings a wealth of knowledge that will support her role as the Sr. Staff Specialist.

Dionne is located in the OADR Suite, 50C-A235. Her email address is dlbnod@rit.edu. Please stop by or send an email to introduce yourself.

Counseling and Academic Advising Services update

Submitted by Vicki Liggera

NTID Counseling and Academic Advising Services would like to welcome Andrew “Andy” Jose to the team! As an alumnus of the RIT Social Work program, he brings a wealth of vocational rehabilitation experience from both Alaska and Colorado. He will work with the students in the Business Studies department. Welcome aboard!

Directory photo time

Faculty and staff interested in getting a new or updated directory photo can sign up for a timeslot for Jan. 29 – Feb. 2 using this schedule.

Personnel

Submitted by Maria Ocasio

Please join me in congratulating our colleagues who have transferred within the college, and welcome our newest hire.

New Hire:

Andrew Jose, senior counselor/academic advisor, CAAS

Transfers:

Samara Maldonado, counselor, SAISD
Olivia Shannon, real-time captioning coordinator II, DAS
Amanda Tillapaugh, captioning development specialist/team lead, DAS

Cube sculpture in front of NTID LBJ building

Three questions with Sean Cosslett, psychology major and ASL consultant from Littleton, Colorado

What is the best part of your major?

Working with individuals and inspiring them to make a positive difference in their lives.

What would surprise people to know about you?

I changed my major four times from film and animation, then mechanical engineering technology, then electrical engineering, and now psychology.

What do you enjoy doing in your free time?

I enjoy reading, playing board games, traveling, hiking, skiing, and camping!

Three questions with Laural Hartman, artist and senior lecturer, Visual Communications Studies Department

What is the best part of your job?

Being in a creative environment and watching my students grow creatively over time. It is a very rewarding experience.

What would surprise people to know about you?

I worked as a floral designer part-time throughout high school and college!

What do you enjoy doing in your free time?

I enjoy a good game night, day trips to small towns, and watching my son play hockey.

Kudos

Peter Hauser has been invited to join the National Science Foundation’s Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering.
Rain Bosworth, associate professor in the Department of Liberal Studies at NTID, presented “Are we WEIRDA? Ableist sampling in psychology research” as part of the Diversity in Disability symposium at the 64th Psychonomic Society meeting, held Nov. 16-19 in San Francisco. This marked the first time in the society’s history that blind, deaf, and neurodiverse scholars in social science presented in one session.
Patrick Graham is featured in a video regarding his work with the French American Foundation.
Laural Hartman and Aaron Swindle of NTID’s Visual Communications Studies Department, are part of a two-person exhibition, “Transient Motifs” at the RIT City Space Feb. 2 – March 2, 2024. Hartman’s other exhibition, “Situational Awareness,” will continue to be shown in the Geisel Gallery at the Legacy Tower until the end of February.

In the news

Graphic: News stories and media coverage

Passings

Gordon Pickering passed away Dec. 8, 2023. He was a graduate of the associate degree in Architecture program.
Kelly A. Madsen, SVP ’84, ‘89 NTID (Applied Accounting), passed away on December 14, 2023.
John Peter Croke Sr., '73 Engineering (Engineering Technology (Pre-1975)), passed away Jan. 12, 2024.