News

Dr. Russell W. Bessette and his wife, Melissa, joined RIT officials and other dignitaries to announce a donation of two patents and the creation of the Dr. Russell and Melissa Bessette Award for Doctoral Student Excellence, a $3.05 million bequest from which funding will be awarded annually as part of recruitment or at any point during a doctoral student’s enrollment at RIT.

RIT has again been recognized as one of the best national universities by U.S. News & World Report, which also cited the university as among the most innovative, best valued, and with highly regarded cooperative education and internship programs.

In the wake of the Taliban’s takeover in Afghanistan and the Afghan government’s collapse, RIT is collaborating with universities, nonprofits, and governmental agencies to support students and scholars who have evacuated the country or are attempting still to leave.

RIT is considered one of the nation’s best universities for undergraduate education, according to The Princeton Review. The education-services company features RIT in the just-published 2022 edition of its book The Best 387 Colleges. RIT was also listed fourth in the Top 50 Game Design: Undergraduate category.

LaVerne McQuiller Williams, professor and current interim dean of the College of Liberal Arts, has been named associate provost for Faculty Affairs at the university, effective Sept. 1. In this role, McQuiller Williams will oversee the Office of Faculty Affairs, within the Office of the Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Dozens of RIT students are once again crisscrossing the globe this year for in-person international education experiences. Thirteen students from RIT’s global campuses and 11 students from RIT’s international exchange partners came to study at RIT’s campus in Rochester this fall. Meanwhile, 16 students from RIT’s Rochester campus have headed off for study abroad experiences across the world.

RIT has received the “Peace Corps Prep” designation, enabling its students to take certain classes to better prepare them for service in the Peace Corps upon graduation. RIT is the first university in Western New York to receive the designation, and the fifth in the state.

Students, faculty, and staff are starting a new year during a continuing global pandemic. But that’s not stopping the momentum of student success, research, fundraising, and building projects designed to make RIT even better. That was just part of the message RIT President David Munson told the university community this morning at his annual President’s Address.

When classes begin Aug. 23, university administrators expect students will enjoy a more traditional fall semester, albeit one with masking requirements. Most classes will be held in person and related academic activities will resume. 

Tia Shipman earned her master’s degree in health systems management while working full time. The Health Systems Quality and Organization Learning class gave her a clear direction in a health care field crowded with possibilities.

To be considered for the list, recommended schools had to demonstrate excellence or competency in integrated learning-through-doing orientation; mentoring, guidance, and coaching for making; physical makerspaces; accessible spaces and tools that support independent, collaborative projects; and a diverse, active community of makers.

College of Art and Design participated in this summer's Studio930 design consultancy, an interdisciplinary studio that focuses on the development of assistive healthcare solutions by leveraging the use of technology, art, and design.