News by Topic: Racial Inclusiveness

Sai Sri Nidhi Munaganuru, from Hyderabad, India, anticipates completing her Ph.D. this summer from RIT’s mechanical and industrial engineering program. Her work extends the capability of carbon fiber technology through a new manufacturing approach that could eliminate high production costs, waste, and dependence on skilled labor.

Students are bringing mural art into the spotlight through TunnelVision, an immersive project designed to engage and inspire. The initiative transforms the residence hall tunnels into a vibrant gallery, showcasing student-created murals. It aims to foster community and spark conversations about public art on campus.

In his role for NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, Clayton Turner oversees executive leadership, strategic planning, and overall management of all technology maturation and demonstration programs for critical space-focused technologies.

Students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to join in a day of conversation, panels, and presentations intended to offer the opportunity to engage in intentional and honest dialogue about diversity and inclusion topics.

RIT’s commitment to diversity has been recognized with INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine's Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award and Diversity Champion designation.

The 21st cohort of RIT’s Future Faculty Career Exploration Program was welcomed to campus Sept. 25-28. The program invites exceptional underrepresented researchers and artists to experience what it would be like to be a faculty member at RIT.

Alvarado-Fischer serves as the vice president, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion officer at Excellus BlueCross BlueShield and volunteers for numerous community organizations. As a result of her own intersecting identities, she has a strong passion for social justice with a special interest in women, Latinx, and LGBTQ+ issues.

RIT is offering a global public health BS degree program and is accepting students for fall 2025. The new degree program will prepare students for public health careers, medical school, clinical health professional programs, law school, and many other graduate degrees.

Nastaran Nagshineh, a Ph.D. candidate at RIT, successfully bridged the Rochester and Dubai campuses, paving the way for future international students. Nagshineh is one of 67 Ph.D. students who defended their thesis this academic year and who will earn their doctorate.

Hosted by the Black Awareness Coordinating Committee (BACC), the event featured Minett Professor Sherry Tshibangu addressing the graduates during the ceremony, sharing that the graduates’ journeys were taken with exceptional courage, and that their legacy is one to be continued.

Orlando Ortiz took over as the RIT Alumni Association president in January, an association with which he has been a member of for 10 years. He is also active with RIT’s Lambda Alpha Upsilon Fraternity Inc. and is a mentor with RIT’s Men of Color, Honor, and Ambition (MOCHA) program.

As a child, Shakierah Smith loved watching Law & Order. Now a real estate associate, Smith says that her success was thanks to her support system and positive experiences at RIT.