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As spring approaches, we will have an opportunity to celebrate the success of our college: Imagine RIT exhibits, the Outstanding Undergraduate Scholar Awards, the Kearse Writing Awards, and the hooding and graduation ceremonies.
Read the full message >
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Amazing People, Inspiring Work |
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Rebecca DeRoo Named William A. Kern Professor in Communication |
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| Dynamic Interdisciplinary Programs Open Doors |
COLA’s Humanities, Computing, and Design (HCD) bachelor’s degree is among the “new economy majors” that helped earn RIT a spot on Forbes’ newly released 15 Top Colleges For Launching Your Career list. A distinctly RIT interdisciplinary program, it combines the study of new media design, web and mobile development, database management, and computing with a range of liberal arts fields like communication, culture, history, journalism, literature, and the arts. The result is an adaptable, flexible, high-demand skill set that helps students like Jacob Brodeur land co-ops and grads launch dynamic careers.
Read about Jacob's dream co-op with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority >
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At the 2026 Ovation: RIT Performing Arts Showcase earlier this month, student talent took the spotlight as performers competed for prizes and thrilled the audience.
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The COLA Student Advisory Board brought together students, faculty, and staff for a cozy breakfast on a cold winter morning earlier this semester. Both an advisory and an advocacy group, the SAB champions for students' needs and offers invaluable perspectives for the college.
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Save the date for Imagine RIT 2026: Saturday, April 25. RIT's signature showcase of the imaginative and inventive spirit of our students draws crowds and delights visitors.
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Kudos to 1991 grad Kathi Wescott! Distinguished Alumni Awards are presented annually by each of RIT’s nine colleges, the Graduate School, and the School of Individualized Study to alumni who have performed at the highest levels of their profession or who have contributed to the advancement and leadership of civic, philanthropic, or service organizations.
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Graduation Day is months away, but COLA kicks off the celebration now! At the COLA Graduation Fair, graduating seniors and grad students were treated to swag, snacks, and sound advice for checking off the graduation "to do" list.
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Three hundred and sixty College of Liberal Arts undergraduate students earned a spot on the fall 2025 semester dean's list, including 74 who are double majors with the college.
Read the full list >
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Meet Florence Ayemhoba, Global Scholar |
A fourth-year Psychology major with an immersion in criminal justice
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| Shameless brag: I have friends that are doctors, nurses, engineers, computer analysts, designers, photographers and the whole lot! Super proud to know smart and talented people!
Three foods I can’t live without: Jollof rice, plantains, and roasted yams with grilled fish and sauce (I’m really Nigerian.)
A goal or dream I am working towards: I have a very important goal I’m working on. It’s a blog called “Diary of an African child”.
Advice for younger me: No matter how scared you are, speak, get angry, it’s okay to be angry, don’t doubt your hurt or pain, your feelings are your feelings and they’re valid!
On my perfect day off, I’m most likely to be found: eating or sleeping or rewatching Korean drama or anime
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Kelley Holley, assistant professor of performing arts, published the chapter "Delectable Viewing: Baking, Spectatorship, and Digital Theatre" in the newly published book Performing the Edible Sustenance, Sensation, and Sustainability. The chapter examines how alternative types of audience engagement serve as a response to digital performance, and how these practices establish a sense of shared theatrical space.
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Mitchell Rieder, a fourth-year economics and computer science double major, and Jeffrey Wagner, professor in the Department of Economics, co-presented “The Law and Economics of Tradeable Satellite Debris Permit Market Design” on January 20 at the virtual Space Economics Seminar. The seminar was co-organized by The Ownership Project at Harvard Business School and the European Space Policy Institute.
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Jessica Hardin, associate professor of sociology and anthropology; Katie Healey, adjunct faculty member in science, technology, and society; Kristoffer Whitney, associate professor in science, technology, and society; and Kaitlin Stack Whitney, associate professor in science, technology, and society, co-published the article “Design, Disability, and Critical Pedagogy in STS” in the journal Science, Technology, & Human Values. The article, which was co-published by Anna Carter ’25 (sociology and anthropology, biomedical engineering), Lee Smith ’24 (individualized study, sociology and anthropology), and Angeline Hamele ’25 BS (sociology and anthropology), MFA (industrial design) explores how the design of course assignments, curricula, classrooms, and buildings imagines particular learners and ways of being and how STS can provide ways to interrogate and intervene to make more inclusive, expansive futures in higher education and beyond.
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Divya Ramjee, assistant professor in the Department of Criminal Justice, co-authored “From ransoms to ruin: Are extortion payments by ransomware victims insurable?" The study supports the claim that extortion payments by ransomware victims should not be considered insurable by cyber insurance providers that use assumptions of classical ruin theory in their solvency determinations, encouraging an evidence-based approach for creating and applying cyber risk solvency standards by insurance regulators to ransomware-related extortion payments.
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Spring Semester Traditions You Won't Want to Miss |
Of all the seasons of a typical university year, spring is perhaps the busiest. Undergraduate capstones are polished up and prepared for presentation. Award and honors ceremonies recognize outstanding scholars. Conferences and symposiums bring people together to discuss the important issues of our day.
Music, dance, and theatre performances inspire, and milestones—from having successfully survived your first year of college to being ready to cross the stage on commencement day—are met.
It’s a time that celebrates big ideas, community, and hope, and you won’t want to miss a moment of it this year. Bookmark the RIT events calendar and make time on your calendar to engage and participate. Here is just a sampling of what’s in store:
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Human-Centered. Tech-Forward.
Contemporary Liberal Arts for a Complex Digital Age.
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Credits: Content and photos used in this newsletter were sourced from a variety of talented people on the RIT team, including Felícia Swartzenberg, Carlos Ortiz, Scott Hamilton, and Joe Gallo.
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