Photo Spotlights

Sunny skies greeted RIT graduates for their procession during commencement weekend, May 20-21. More than 3,500 degrees were conferred on students completing undergraduate and graduate studies within RIT's eight colleges. This year's commencement served as the climax for the university's 175th anniversary celebration.

Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii) presented the keynote address at RIT's convocation ceremony, May 20. A yearlong celebration of RIT's 175th anniversary culminated this weekend as thousands of parents and family members, friends and members of the RIT community gathered on campus for the 120th annual commencement.

Brian Gonzales, left, entered the world 10 minutes ahead of his twin brother. Not to be outdone, Kevin Gonzales will beat his "older" brother to an RIT diploma by a full half hour. The brothers, who graduate from separate RIT colleges during almost simultaneous ceremonies, join more than 3,500 other graduates at commencement weekend, May 20-21. For more information, visit www.rit.edu/commencement.

RIT students celebrated the end of the academic year with Senior Night on May 13. An evening of free music, food and fun for graduating seniors, events included a Las Vegas-style casino in the Student Alumni Union's Alfred Davis Room.

Game on in Golisano! Engineers from McAfee Inc., a global leader in network security, challenged six teams of students in the contest, “Build and Defend Your Digital Fortress,” May 13. The students designed and defended computer networks against simulated attacks from McAfee and the RIT student group, S.P.A.R.S.A. (Security Practices and Research Student Association). The contest was part of McAfee Day, celebrating McAfee’s recent donation of $1 million in equipment to the B. Thomas Golisano College of Computing and Information Sciences, for its master’s degree in computer security and information assurance.

Future generations of RIT students, faculty and staff will be able to reflect on the 175th anniversary and RIT history when they crack open a time capsule years from now. Here, students check out the treasures commemorating RIT's history, May 12. The treasures will be buried in a garden area outside the Student Alumni Union. The time capsule will include an RIT hockey uniform, RIT decals, the RIT documentary DVD, copies of Reporter and The University Magazine and a student’s blog burned on CD.

Host RIT captured seventh and 15th places overall among 71 challengers in the 30th annual Mini Baja East competition May 5-7 at RIT and Hogback Hill Motocross track in Palmyra, Wayne County. Shown here, RIT’s Ryan Lindauere, a second-year mechanical engineering major, competes in the land maneuverability challenge on May 6. A team from Ecole De Technologie Superieure in Montreal captured first place overall in the collegiate design and off-road driving competition, which was the largest-ever Mini Baja East contest and drew hundreds of spectators. RIT last hosted the event in 1982.

David Parish, second from right, president of the Livingston County Historical Society, presents a copy of the 1830 published proceedings of New York State Assembly to RIT's Cary Graphic Arts Collection. The book, which documents the charter of one of RIT's forerunners, the Rochester Athenaeum, has been donated to the collection in recognition of the university's 175th anniversary. Among those attending the presentation were, from left to right, Scott Canaan, Information and Technology Services senior database administrator, David Pankow, Cary Collection curator, and Dane Gordon, College of Liberal Arts professor emeritus.

James Macchiano, left, and Cory Hoffman will head up RIT Student Government for the 2005-2006 academic year. Macchiano, a third-year animation student, becomes president with Hoffman, a fourth-year mechanical engineering student in the dual degree (BS/MS) program, as his vice president. The election experienced the highest student voter turnout yet with a record 3,300 votes, more than twice last year's participation.

Student Government revived a campus tradition with the RIT parade, organized in honor of the university's 175th anniversary. The event, held on April 30 as part of the annual Spring Festival, featured floats created by RIT clubs, departments and other campus groups, as well as dancing and juggling acts.

Joanne Isham described technology challenges related to remote sensing during the IT Collaboratory Symposium at RIT. Isham, deputy director at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, told the audience that enhanced mapping techniques offer important new benefits to first responders and the military. About 90 participants of the May 4 symposium also learned about advances in photonics, nanomaterials and microsystems.

The 15th annual E3 Engineering and Technology Fair drew hundreds of Rochester-area middle school students to RIT’s George H. Clark Gymnasium on April 28. The fair, sponsored by the Rochester Engineering Society, featured more than two-dozen hands-on exhibits emphasizing engineering, exploration and experimentation.