Photo Spotlights

Matthew Olowin, left, a third-year industrial design student from Charlottesville, Va., and Benjamin Maitland, a fourth-year computer science student from Lenoxville, Pa., take part in the first fencing practice of the school year. The RIT fencing club teaches sword play and is open to all students.

Yasin Bayraktar, left, a laboratory science technology major from Sugarland, Texas, and LiXuan He, a business, hospitality and services management and communication major from Brampton, Ontario, Canada, sampled some apple treats during NTID’s 18th annual Apple Festival on Aug. 26. The event was an opportunity for new and returning students to meet and learn about resources for students and ways to become involved on campus.

Jason Karol, president of RIT Anglers, casts a line in a pond near RIT’s H Lot, where he caught a 3-pound largemouth bass. Club members also travel around the country to compete against other collegiate anglers. RIT Anglers is just one of more than 250 student clubs on the Henrietta campus, covering interests varying from African dance to ultimate Frisbee.

Third-year photojournalism student Brittainy Newman from New York City photographed Albanian soccer fans during her summer class in Kosovo. Assistant Professor Meredith Davenport taught the interdisciplinary five week summer class in Pristina, Kosovo on documentary projects, utilizing video, audio and still photography to tell stories. Visits to a Kosovo magazine, travel, tours and informal talks were part of the program.

Day two of the new semester is intense as Julia Nelson, a second-year mechanical engineering student from Pittsburgh, and her classmates participate in a morning Measurements Lab. Led by Lecturer Robert Carter, left, and Professor Mark Kempski, both in the mechanical engineering department, students learn about how to design and perform experiments and tests—such as data acquisition and statistical analysis—to solve engineering problems. The lab took place in the Knorr-Bremse Mechatronics Laboratory in RIT’s Kate Gleason College of Engineering.

Global Village housing is being expanded to accommodate more than 140 students. A four-story building is under construction to consist of studio apartments and four-bedroom suites. The project is scheduled to be completed by August 2017.

Freshmen, transfer and returning students walk the quarter mile on the first day of classes. This year, RIT has a record enrollment of about 19,000 students on its campuses in Rochester, including about 600 undergraduate students at RIT campuses in China, Croatia, Dubai and Kosovo. This year’s freshman class is expected to be about 2,660, smaller than last year’s record class but on par with previous years.

Lighting the Way is a welcoming ceremony for new RIT women sponsored by the Center for Women and Gender. All women at RIT are invited to attend as well as new and returning students, alumnae, faculty and staff. This special event, held on Aug. 18, features a lantern-lit procession and dessert reception.

RIT President Bill Destler addresses the RIT community at the beginning of the 2016-17 academic year. It was his 10th and final welcoming address, as he plans to retire next summer. Destler said he will not coast to his retirement, and thanked RIT's faculty and staff, and his spouse, Rebecca Johnson, for the dedication and support.

RIT students march in the Tiger Walk to the Convocation for New Students and Families in the Gordon Field House Aug. 17. About 2,660 first-year students have enrolled this year.

The Resource Fair, held August 16 in the Student Alumni Union, is a comprehensive event that allows new students and their families to get their questions answered, meet with staff members, take care of business, and get information regarding the resources and services available at RIT and in the community.

Christopher Spinelli, a first-year student in mechanical engineering from Camillus, N.Y., gets a lift from RIT President Bill Destler. RIT welcomes some 3,300 new undergraduates to the Henrietta campus today, including freshmen and transfer students. The freshman class hails from 47 states—plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands—as well as 54 countries.