100,000 Strong

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David Blonski '07 (B.S./M.E. industrial and systems engineering) is RIT's 100,000 alumnus.

Commencement 2007 was a milestone occasion at RIT – for many reasons.

President Bill Clinton was keynote speaker. Retiring RIT President Albert J. Simone presided over his final commencement.

And 4,023 men and women made the transition from RIT student to RIT graduate, pushing the total of living RIT alumni over the 100,000 mark for the first time.

“This is a remarkable event in the life of RIT, and shows that the institute has arrived as a major university on the national and international stage,” says Brian O’Shaughnessy ’81, ’84 (chemistry), chair of RIT’s Alumni Network Board of Directors. “As alumni, we should all take great pride not only in the size of our alumni body, but in its accomplishments, its diversity, and its global reputation. All of our alumni continue to benefit from RIT’s growing influence and stature, and as such we have a collective obligation to support our alma mater, its educational mission, and its commitment to excellence.”

RIT’s 103,083 alumni live in every state in the U.S. More than 3,000 live outside the U.S. in 110 countries and on every continent except Antarctica. Nearly half have graduated since 1990, which makes sense considering RIT’s tremendous growth in the past 15 years. More than 15 percent hold multiple degrees from RIT. About 31 percent are women.

The statistics paint an interesting picture. To find out more, go to the online version of RIT: The University Magazine