Photo Spotlights

The Center for Campus Life and the College of Liberal Arts presented “Music for the Holidays” on Dec. 8. The RIT Gospel Ensemble and groups from the RIT Music Program performed, including the a cappella group Surround Sound, above.

If you haven’t had the chance to get your family’s holiday portrait taken yet, RIT is offering portrait sittings Dec. 15-16 as a fundraiser for the university’s annual Big Shot photography project. The portrait location is the Crossroads building on the RIT campus (please park in S Lot). Only cash or checks accepted as payment. Props are not available at the site but participants are welcome to bring their own. For more information, call 585-475-2716.

Anna Ross ’10 (advertising photography) landed her dream magazine job at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. She had just finished working there as a photography intern. Now, Ross is an assistant of photo research and special issues photo editor.

RIT students were treated to a holiday-themed dinner at Grace Watson Dining Hall on Dec. 4. The meal included roasted turkey, steak, salmon, ham, quinoa and eggplant and a variety of desserts. Music was by Me & The Boyz and the Magic Guy provided some tableside tricks.

Neil Montanus ’53 is being honored with an exhibition of his work in RIT’s University Gallery. Montanus’s 35-year career as a photographer with Eastman Kodak Co. allowed him to travel the world and to photograph 55 Kodak Coloramas. A reception with Montanus is 5–7 p.m. Dec. 13 in the gallery. To read more, go to www.rit.edu/news/story.php?id=49594.

Visitors to the Center for Environmental Initiatives’ 39th annual Community Salute to the Environment received tours of the new building that will house the Golisano Institute for Sustainability on Dec. 3. The building is on track to meet LEED Platinum certification and is a model of advanced green technologies, featuring state-of-the-art laboratories and teaching facilities that will keep RIT students at the forefront of this critical work.

Dr. Daniel B. Ornt joined RIT as the first vice president of the Institute of Health Sciences and Technology last December. In this role, he has emphasized wellness.

From left, scientists Michael Savka and Andre Hudson have decoded the whole genome sequence of bacteria associated with Riesling grapevines and Jamaican sugarcane. They are professors in the Thomas Gosnell School of Life Sciences within RIT’s College of Science. To read more, go to www.rit.edu/news/story.php?id=49589.

From left, Mike and Tonia Galban, Ganondagan State Historic Site interpreters and Haudenosaunee cultural experts, demonstrated quillwork on Nov. 28. The event, sponsored by RIT’s Native American Future Stewards Program, was part of Native American Heritage Month. Navajo recording artist Radmilla Cody presents her keynote address and performs at 5:30 p.m. today in RIT’s Vignelli Center for Design Studies, adjacent to James E. Booth Hall.

Radmilla Cody, a traditional Navajo recording artist, Indie Award winner, Native American Award nominee, Miss Navajo Nation (1997) and international performer, was the keynote speaker for RIT’s Native American Heritage Month celebration. A survivor of domestic violence, Cody uses her personal experiences to advocate against violence and prejudice toward biracial or multiracial individuals. Cody spoke with a group of students prior to her keynote presentation Nov. 29.

Midnight Oil, RIT’s newest coffee shop, debuted Nov. 26 in the Crossroads building near Global Village. Coffee, specialty beverages, sandwiches and desserts are offered 7:30 a.m.-midnight Monday through Friday and 10 a.m.-midnight Saturday and Sunday.

Wil Sideman, from Greene, Maine, is a graduate student in the RIT’s School for American Crafts glass program. Assisting Sideman is Brendan Miller ’12 (MFA), artist in residence. Sideman will graduate from RIT in the spring of 2013.