Newsletter January 2020

News and Deadlines

Explore Croatia Application Deadline
The deadline to apply for RIT’s family educational abroad experience is quickly approaching! On this 10-day program in Dubrovnik, Croatia, RIT families will explore Adriatic culture, history, and ecology through guided tours, interactions with locals, and sampling local cuisine. Learn more and apply on the Explore Croatia website. Program dates are May 16-25, 2020. Applications are due on February 1.

There will be an Explore Croatia information session on Wednesday, January 22 at 5:30 p.m. in the Student Alumni Union Clark A Conference Room (Room 2520). 

Resident Advisor (RA) Positions
The Center for Residence Life is seeking student leaders for the position of Resident Advisor (RA). RAs live in RIT’s Residence Halls to help support and mentor students. For more information and to apply, student should visit the Center for Residence Life website. Interested students can attend the information session on January 16 at 8 p.m. in Gosnell 3305 for additional information. Applications are due February 3.

Spring Career Fair
The Spring Career Fair will be held on Wednesday, February 26 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Gordon Field House. The Career Fair draws over 250 companies, ranging from small tech firms to Fortune 500 companies. Students can swipe in the day of the fair with their RIT ID. 

In addition to the university-wide Career Fair, upcoming specialized fairs include:

• Packaging Science Career Fair—February 5
• Civil Engineering and Construction Industry Career Day—February 7
• Creative Industry Day—March 5

2020 Commencement Save-the-Date
RIT’s 2020 Commencement ceremonies will be held on May 8-9. Remind your graduating student to watch their RIT email for information in the upcoming months and visit the Commencement website for additional information. 

Program Profile

FreezeFest
There are many ways for students to be engaged on campus, including intramurals, clubs and organizations, and student employment. Three weekends a year, RIT makes it easy for students to get involved in the campus community during SpringFest, Fall Fest, and the upcoming FreezeFest.

FreezeFest is RIT’s annual winter festival that encourages students to embrace the cold Rochester weather and enjoy many planned activities. FreezeFest 2020 is January 30-February 2. Events include President Munson’s Performing Arts Challenge, Chocolate on Ice—an ice skating and chocolate festival at the Gene Polisseni Center, the FreezeFest Ski Lodge, build-a-buddy, escape rooms, and more. Roarie, our FreezeFest mascot, also visits campus and joins RITchie in spreading RIT spirit!

FreezeFest is a great way for students to take a break from their academics, get out of their residence hall room or apartment, and experience many fun, diverse, and free activities. The festival is a collaborative event sponsored by the Center for Campus Life, the Center for Residence Life, the College Activities Board, RIT Athletics, Student Government, and many clubs and student organizations.

Students can find the full event schedule on the FreezeFest website and find regular updates by following RIT Student Life on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

If FreezeFest sounds a little too chilly for your student, have them save the date for SpringFest 2020—April 16-19. 

Information and Updates

1098-T Tax Information
1098-T tax statements will be sent to eligible students' permanent addresses by the end of January. The 1098-T statement reports the amount of qualified tuition and related expenses that were billed during the 2019 calendar year. If you have questions about the 1098-T and educational tax benefits, contact information can be found on the Student Financial Services page. 

Spring 2020 Financial Aid Refunds
If your student is owed a refund from a credit balance from disbursed financial aid, Student Financial Services (SFS) began processing early refunds on January 3. For a full refund, students must wait until all approved aid has paid to their account on January 24. Visit the SFS website for all details on refunds.

FAFSA Reminder 
Remember to file the 2020-21 FAFSA application this month if you have not already done so. Please transfer your 2018 federal tax return information to the FAFSA via IRS Data Retrieval Tool (DRT) to streamline the process. Follow the instructions when filing the FAFSA.

Parent Poll 
Each month, we ask parents to respond to our Parent Poll and provide feedback on a topic related to RIT, your student, and you. In December, we asked how important it is that your student get volunteer or service experience while in college. Your responses were split—33% said very important; 44% said somewhat important; and 23% said not at all important. Please take a moment to answer our January question.

Parent Question of the Month
Question: When do students find out if they made the Dean’s List? Does RIT notify hometown newspapers?

Response: Dean's List notifications are generated after add/drop of the following semester, so for fall 2019 this is January 21. Students will be notified if they made the Dean's List-how they are notified varies by college (some receive a paper letter and others will get an email). Unless your student opted out of this notification on their My Merit pages, notifications will be sent to local papers based on their permanent address zip code.

Featured Photo
In case you don’t follow the Parent and Family Programs Facebook page, here’s what you’ve missed: It was a beautiful morning on campus last week…just before the snow squall hit and changed to white-out conditions!