News by Topic: Doing Good

WXXI talks to Jessica Lieberman, associate professor in the Department of Performing Arts, about a mural of Susan B. Anthony that she and her daughter created.

A company that employs 14 RIT graduates donated 21,000 face shields to health care facilities in need.

In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, RIT’s Division of Diversity and Inclusion wanted to create a way for faculty and staff to connect with people from different backgrounds despite the limitations that come with physical distancing. In April, they launched the “What’s Your Diversity” program, a weekly storytelling and dialogue hour held via Zoom that allowed RIT faculty and staff to share how diversity impacts their lives.

FOX Rochester talks to Kurtis Kracke ’15 (industrial design), co-founder of ThermApparel, which created a cooling vest to help those who are sensitive to the heat.

Years of expertise as an emergency manager and volunteer firefighter and EMT has allowed RIT alumnus Christopher Tarantino ’13 (business administration) to develop his training and consulting company. And as a result of COVID-19, his company is helping those in private and public sectors create plans to mitigate this public health crisis.

WROC-TV talks to Josh Goldowitz and Scott Wolcott, professors in the Department of Civil Engineering Technology, Environmental Management and Safety, about their research on a cost-effective and sustainable option for wastewater treatment for breweries.

As businesses look to reopen and jumpstart the COVID-19 stalled economy, RIT alumnus Jim Swift finds himself a much sought-after adviser. Swift ’88 is president and chief executive officer of Cortera, a national business intelligence company that is providing analytics on an estimated $1.5 trillion annual business-to-business transactions — data that businesses need to determine their future.

If cars talked to each other, it would improve the travel experience and help save lives—but it could also lead to malicious, even life-threatening, cyberattacks. At RIT, a team of student researchers are working to bridge this cybersecurity gap in vehicle-to-vehicle communications.

Mohammed Mostajo-Radji ’11 (biotechnology) was appointed as Bolivia’s first ambassador for science, technology and innovation in February. He is typically based out of Silicon Valley, helping to encourage technology investment in Bolivia. But on March 19 he flew back home at the request of Bolivia’s interim president, Jeanine Áñez, to help coordinate his country’s efforts to combat COVID-19’s spread.

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.

A game design and development company, a mobile app that identifies resources for mental health support, software that monitors power line losses and line health, and a company developing an affordable wind turbine for building rooftops are the newest members of RIT’s Venture Creations technology business incubator.

Residents of a homeless shelter in Rochester are continuing to receive therapy during the coronavirus pandemic from a team of therapists in a clinical internship program at RIT. The doctoral training program began as an exercise in using telepsychology to deliver care to a marginalized and underserved population. When New York shut down in March to stem the spreading virus, the therapists were already prepared to apply the telehealth protocols in the crisis.