Photo Spotlights

Thirty cyclists are in the midst of the ride of their lives -- and they made a pit stop at Rochester Institute of Technology along the way. RIT hosted the Bike & Build team, a group of college students and recent graduates who are biking across the continent, raising money for poverty housing and stopping to do some charity in five different cities across the United States. RIT provided the riders with food and a place to sleep while they were in Rochester June 27-29. Their stay was sponsored by the Center for Religious Life, Summer Housing Operations and the Habitat for Humanity club.

Dan Gramlich (left) from RIT’s Printing Applications Laboratory shows the Heidelberg Sheetfed Press to Charlie Meyer (center), high school graphic arts teacher at Rush-Henrietta High School and Keith Rankin, graphic arts teacher at Edison High School. Both Meyer and Rankin spent a week at RIT in May learning about the latest print technologies to share with their students. The visit was part of the “Teacher Workshop Scholarship” program sponsored by PAL and the School of Print Media. One of the goals of the program is to promote printing as a viable career path.

Thirty students in RIT’s product development executive master’s program completed a 10-day, four-credit design management course in Milano, Italy — a city recognized as the world capital for design. Students attended lectures and workshops and visited five companies known for product design innovation, including automaker Ferrari. Shown above, Paolo Bocchia, the firm’s vice president of human resources, addresses managing innovation resources. Stefan Carmassi, engineering director, discussed technology developments, design strategy and design management, manufacturing, the customer interface, and teamwork needed among engineers and designers to meet performance and styling requirements for Ferrari automobiles. Students also took a 90-minute tour of the Ferrari plant.

The spring competition of the Institute’s Public Speaking Contest drew 53 participants from across the university. First place and $400 went to Lindsay Lamb, far left, a graphic media major, for her speech on ignition interlock technology and drunk driving. Second place and $200 went to Sarah Ballard, third from left, an industrial and systems engineering major, for her speech on HIV testing. Third place and $100 went to Diane Seaver, second from left, for her speech on the problems with “big box” corporations. The winners are shown standing with Grant Cos, contest organizer and associate professor of communication. The College of Liberal Arts and the department of communication sponsored the event.

RIT mini-Baja driver Paula Minuto navigates through the water, dirt and mud during the 75-mile endurance race at the 2006 Mini Baja East competition, held April 12-15 in Auburn, Ala. Read the News & Events story.

RIT students check out an interactive Web site which takes visitors on a tour through the George Eastman House gardens and provides specifics about the individual flowers. The Web site is one of many multimedia components created by seniors in the new media publishing, design and information technology program who presented their multimedia packages in May. The teams worked with local not-for-profit organizations and designed collateral pieces based on the individual client’s needs.

One of the entrances to the St. Louis Zoo is now home to "Animals Always," a 130-feet long, 36-feet high sculpture created by internationally renowned sculptor and RIT artist-in-residence Albert Paley. A 2-ton rhinoceros, elephants, birds and snakes, are just some of the 60 animals that make up the sculpture. Comprised of 1,300 elements, it is the world’s largest public zoo sculpture and Paley’s first-ever representational work.

Ezenwa “Nelson” Oparah, an electrical engineering technology student in the College of Applied Science and Technology and a marine reservist, was rewarded for both his military service and academic success during a June 9 ceremony. Anne Barton of the National Student Loan Program and Jeffrey Kaye of the New York state Division of Veteran’s Affairs presented Oparah with a $500 scholarship.

Rochester Institute of Technology teamed with the Center For Missing & Exploited Children’s New York branch to host the conference “Keeping Children Safe: In a Changing Online World” June 8 in Ingle Auditorium. Professors Sam McQuade and Jennifer Schneider were among the presenters who aimed to help the nearly 300 law enforcement officials and educators in attendance combat the growing threat posed by cybercrime.

Invited guests enjoyed a pre-grand opening celebration at the New York Wine & Culinary Center, in Canandaigua, June 16. The 19,500- square-foot facility, celebrating New York food, wines and agriculture, is expected to draw tens of thousands of visitors annually to the Finger Lakes region. RIT’s School of Hospitality and Service Management leads the center’s educational component as part of a consortium that also includes Constellation Brands, Wegmans and the New York Wine & Grape Foundation. Programs for the general public include “culinary classrooms” with guest chefs, hands-on educational classes on food, cheese and wine, “culinary kids” classes, wine tastings, tours and more. For more information, visit www.nywcc.com.

The steering wheel of the Etta Belle, which sank in Lake Ontario in 1873. The vessel was discovered two years ago by a team including RIT alumnus Dan Scoville '05. Scoville will return to the lake this summer with an underwater remote-operated vehicle—built by a team of RIT engineering majors—in search of other shipwrecks. Read the News & Events story.

Environmental science professor John Waud (right) and colleague Omar Gordilla band a large oriole in Chiapas, Mexico, as part of a larger effort to monitor the forest and restore the watershed. Read the News & Events story.