AlumniNews Stories

Charles “Chuck” Wallace ’77 (print production technology) is the longest-serving leader of the Eastern Athletic Association for the Deaf (EAAD), a sports organization dedicated to providing athletic activities and competitions for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals in several regional areas.

Thousands of visitors converged on the RIT campus April 29 to experience the future through multimedia presentations, exhibits, hand-on demonstrations, research projects, performing arts, and more at the annual Imagine RIT: Innovation and Creativity Festival. RIT/NTID alumni enjoyed the experience of attending the festival and discovering amazing things. 

From an early age, Jason Listman knew that he was called to serve and help people navigate through their challenges. But it was a connection with an RIT/NTID professor that steered him into the classroom, where he would soon stand out as an instructor, mentor, and facilitator.

RIT’s Alumni Association recently featured RIT/NTID alumna Ebony “Geeky” Watson (AAS ’04) as part of their Tiger Heritage Spotlight. In the profile, Watson shared why she chose RIT/NTID for college, her college experience, and the influence at RIT/NTID had that shaped who she is both personally and professionally. Watson works for one of the top Fortune 500 companies as a technical specialist/software engineering project manager during the day, and a creative director/sneaker designer at night.

Students from NTID’s Department of American Sign Language and Interpreting Education provided sign language interpreting throughout a Deaf Day of Play event at The Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester. Several RIT/NTID ASLIE alumni attended the event on Sunday, March 5, to celebrate Deaf Awareness Month. Danny Maffia, ASLIE alumnus and interpreting program director, said the event provided interpreting students the opportunity to get real-world interpreting practice, and it provided the Deaf community a more accessible experience at the museum. 

RIT/NTID 2019 criminal justice graduate Cortez Harris launched his career in law enforcement to help people and make a positive impact on his community. He is a passionate advocate for social justice, dedicated to the principle that people deserve equal rights and opportunities and ensuring they get the support they need. 

Daniel Durant, an RIT/NTID alumnus and award-winning actor, made an appearance at RIT as part of the NTID Lyon Lectureship Series for a special screening of the movie “CODA” and Q&A Session with the audience in Ingle Auditorium on Thursday, February 16. The following day, Durant spent time with faculty, staff and students on the RIT campus, sharing his acting experience and journey in Hollywood and delivering messages of inspiration and hope to RIT/NTID students. 

At a press briefing at the Canandaigua Veterans Administration facility on Jan. 4, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) announced an increase in the annual appropriation for RIT/NTID. RIT/NTID received $92.5 million for the fiscal year 2023, a $4 million increase from 2022.

Recent RIT/NTID graduates or soon-to-be graduates who qualify for NTID support are eligible for 45-50 percent off the graduate tuition rate for any master’s degree program they choose.

The mother and brother of a late NTID faculty member and alumna are paying tribute to her memory by establishing the Skyer Family Foundation Endowed Scholarship to assist deaf and hard-of-hearing students achieve success in STEM-related majors.

To be more transparent with the alumni community and keep you all informed of what the NTID Alumni Association Board of Directors is doing, we have created this “From the NTIDAA Board” update, which we will regularly send out via Alumni News. 

Brick City Homecoming and Family Weekend is an annual RIT tradition. This year’s event was October 14-16, celebrating families, students, alumni, staff, and friends of the university with one spectacular weekend.