Collaboration between RIT and Griffiss Institute fosters the STEM workforce pipeline

RIT is working with the U.S. Department of Defense to get high school students interested in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

Griffiss Institute, a nonprofit talent and technology accelerator for the Department of Defense, and RIT hosted the New York-Upstate Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (JSHS) in Rome, N.Y., on Feb. 1.

Seventy-two regional high school students out of 679 applicants competed for scholarships at the symposium in the oral and poster research categories. The top five winners will advance to the national event in April in Chantilly, Va.

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RIT

Donna Burnette is the executive director of RIT’s K-12 University Center.

The N.Y.-Upstate symposium at Griffiss Institute was one of three events held in the state and one of only 48 competitions held nationally. More than 75 judges and volunteers, including numerous RIT faculty and students who collaborate with DoD on other STEM initiatives, supported the event.

Donna Burnette, executive director of RIT’s K-12 University Center, was awarded federal funding from the Department of Defense to host the competition.

“The connection of Griffiss and RIT to the event makes sense as RIT is the current administrator of the Army Educational Outreach Program (AEOP) Internships and Fellowships and the Griffiss Institute supports U.S. Air Force and Space Force STEM,” said Burnette, who brought the AEOP program to RIT.

Efforts at both institutes foster the Department of Defense objective to grow a STEM workforce pipeline to maintain the nation’s leadership in science and technology.

Heather Hage, president and CEO of the Griffiss Institute, emphasized the impact of the event. “The world needs well-prepared and ethical scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs now more than ever,” she said. “The JSHS event empowers upstate New York youth with opportunities to advance science in service of our great nation.”

In 2022, RIT became the first private university to join Griffiss Institutes’ Innovare Alliance. The Innovare Alliance is dedicated to fostering an Open Innovation Environment among Upstate New York academic, industrial, and defense communities. Other top-tier allies include the Air Force Research Laboratory Information Directorate; the Griffiss Institute; Oneida County of New York; City of Rome, N.Y.; Central New York Defense Alliance; State University of New York; and New York State Technology Enterprise Corporation.