Student’s access to state-of-the-art facilities and software, impressive faculty with industry experience, and a wealth of opportunities for hands-on learning before graduation has earned RIT’s School of Film and Animation (SOFA) more recognition as one of the top animation schools in the nation. Animation Career Review, a leading online resource for aspiring animation and game design professionals, placed RIT 12th in the publication’s Top 50 Animation Schools and Colleges in the U.S. for 2025. This is a leap ahead for the school after placing 16th in the publication’s 2024 rankings. ‌ Sophie Proe In an explanation of its rankings, Animation Career Review emphasized RIT students’ access to classrooms and labs outfitted with state-of-the-art equipment and the latest industry software. Additionally, in separate ranking lists released by Animation Career Review, RIT placed 7th on the Top 25 Animation Master of Fine Arts (MFA) Degree Programs list; 11th on the Top 40 Private Animation Schools and Colleges in the U.S. list; 5th on the Top 25 Animation Schools and Colleges on the East Coast list; and 11th on the Top 50 Animation BFA Degree Programs list. Shanti Thakur, director of SOFA, said the 2024-2025 academic year has been exciting for the school. In addition to the Animation Career Review rankings, SOFA was recognized as a top film school by The Hollywood Reporter and TheWrap for the first time in the school’s history. “Over the last four years, SOFA has advanced incredibly. New cutting-edge animation facilities, new faculty hires, award-winning student work, and new study away opportunities both nationally and internationally have translated to tremendous recognition for our school. I look forward to SOFA’s continued success,” said Thakur. In preparing its 2025 rankings, Animation Career Review considered over 200 U.S. schools that offer programs geared toward animation. The publication considers academic reputation; admission selectivity; employment data; the program’s depth, breadth, and faculty; value as it relates to tuition; graduation rate; and retention rate when assembling the list of schools. Animation Career Review also cited RIT’s designation as a Center of Excellence by Toon Boon, the university’s history with the Coca-Cola Refreshing Films program, the RIT in LA study away program, and RIT’s participation in Creative Industry Days when granting the rankings. Alumni job placements at major studios such as DreamWorks, Sony, Disney Animation Studios, Electronic Arts (EA), Nickelodeon, and Dolby also influenced the ranking. Go to the School of Film and Animation website for more details about its program offerings.

A faculty member who uses his business background of seeing technology go from concept to production and a graduating engineering student who enjoys helping others and wants to develop medical devices have been named this year’s RIT Alfred Davis Award winners. Don Pophal, a senior lecturer and lead guide in the Multidisciplinary Senior Design Capstone Program in the Kate Gleason College of Engineering, will receive the 2025  Four Presidents Distinguished Public Service Award. Christian Waldschmidt, a fifth-year biomedical engineering major with a mechanical engineering minor, will receive the Bruce R. James ’64 Distinguished Service Award. They will be recognized at a ceremony at 4 p.m. April 8 in RIT’s University Gallery, followed by a reception at 5 p.m. The ceremony is free and open to all. A native of Williamsport, Pa., Pophal held various leadership positions at Eastman Kodak Company from 1981 to 2006, helping oversee more than a billion dollars in digital imaging technology revenue generation go from the research lab to commercialization. He received a degree in 1982 from RIT in photographic sciences and instrumentation and taught part time at RIT in the 1980s. In 2018, Pophal returned to RIT as an adjunct professor to teach students in multiple fields, including serving as an innovation coach in the Simone Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and was soon hired full-time. “I wanted to put a capstone on my career and come back to RIT to teach,” Pophal said. “I can have more of an impact working with young people and teaching them how to solve problems. I try not to tell them what to think, I want to teach them how to think, how to solve problems. These young persons at RIT now are our futures. We really need them right now.” Pophal mainly works with fifth-year students who will graduate after their capstone projects. He calls them “phenomenally smart. I have no concern about their technical skills, but what I like to do is teach them how to work within a team, and the use of best practices on how to commercialize these new products. These new minds are untethered, and they are way smarter than we are. They come out with solutions we would never have thought of.” Pophal served on the board of directors for the former Lakeside Health Systems in Brockport, N.Y., until 2008. In the town of Sweden, where he lives, he was asked to work with the town’s attorney to help write laws on solar power, battery storage, and wind farms. The Davis Award comes with $2,500 which will be donated to a charity of the recipient’s choice. Pophal says the donation will go to the Seymour Library in Brockport, where he serves on the board of trustees and is chairman of facilities, overseeing an extensive internal remodeling. In his spare time, Pophal enjoys camping and taking his recreation vehicle along the east coast, particularly to his native Pennsylvania. He lives with Mary Ellen Warner, his partner for more than 20 years, and their two dogs, Emma, a golden retriever, and Gabby, a Yorkshire terrier. Helping others and the community Christian Waldschmidt thought he’d like to be an engineer when he was a youngster growing up in the Pittsburgh suburb of Allison Park, Pa. “I always liked playing with Legos and anytime my dad was fixing things in the garage, I would see if I could help,” he said. “In high school, I liked physics and math and realized engineering was right for me.” His focus turned to biomedical engineering after working in a pharmacy when he was in high school. While at RIT, he completed a co-op with Thermo Fisher, a Rochester-area company that designs medical equipment and pharmaceutical devices. After graduation in May, he’ll work at a co-op at a medical manufacturer in Pittsburgh which he hopes will lead to a full-time job there. “I like helping people,” Waldschmidt said. “I feel that applying my skillset may help improve lives and even save lives. There’s a big need in the health care industry right now to be more efficient.” He has volunteered countless hours on many projects to help others on and off campus, yet he said he feels a bit dumbfounded winning this award because he knows there are so many other students who also volunteer in the community. He’s nailed wooden frames with other RIT students during the annual Framing Frenzy event for Habitat for Humanity, and often spent weekends as a building supervisor overseeing student efforts on-site in Batavia, N.Y. where Habitat homes were being erected. Along with his award comes $1,000 to designate to a charity of his choice. “I’m very glad I get to send money to Habitat for Humanity because I worked for them since freshman year. They helped me grow as a person and it makes me happy that I can help them,” he said. Maintaining a 3.76 GPA and being a member of RIT’s Biomedical Engineering Society, he enjoys being active, “nerdy,” playing board games, hiking, playing soccer, disc golf, and working with his 3D printer. “My first semester at RIT, I wanted to join everything,” he said. “There were just so many opportunities that were presented. That was really helpful for me and my time while at RIT, the people I’ve met and the relationships I’ve made have driven me to be the person I am now.” He’s a member of Pi Kappa Phi and Phi Sigma Pi fraternities and helped raise more than $1,000 for the American Cancer Society during RIT’s Relay for Life. He also helped organize an RIT campus cleanup as well as a series of cleanups at an area Buddhist temple, and helped coordinate student volunteer efforts with residents of St. John’s nursing home in Rochester. And Waldschmidt spent a winter break with other RIT biomedical engineering students volunteering at a hospital in Guatemala to repair 58 medical devices, including monitors, ventilators, and infant incubators. “I grew up with a mindset of helping others,” he said. “My parents always felt showing kindness was a good virtue. I really want to show that if you lead by example, that will spread and help others share kindness as well.” About the awards: The Four Presidents Distinguished Public Service Award Fund was created in 2003 by RIT Vice President Emeritus Alfred L. Davis on the occasion of the 65th year of his association with RIT, to commemorate the dedication of the four RIT presidents - Mark Ellingson, Paul Miller, M. Richard Rose, and Albert Simone - with whom he worked, in their service to the Rochester community. The award also recognizes a current member of the faculty or staff who, through his/her public service, mirrors the lives of the four presidents, who have been not only outstanding professionals but also caring members of the community. In 2005 Davis established a companion student award to commemorate the outstanding service of RIT trustee Bruce R. James. The Bruce R. James ’64 Distinguished Public Service Award commemorates the public service of Bruce James, chairman emeritus of the RIT Board of Trustees recognizes an RIT student for exemplary public service in the community with hopes other students will engage in public service.

Hard work is paying off for the Center for Detectors as the team has recently achieved first light using a single photon imaging detector for a NASA-funded project. The center is working to advance and characterize single-photon sensing CMOS image sensors to determine if they can survive the harsh radiation environments in NASA missions. A successful image was recently captured, providing a milestone in the project. An interdisciplinary team has been working for more than a year on this specific project to create a sensor that can survive longer in space. ‌ Center for Detectors An interdisciplinary team developed detector electronics shown here to achieve the first light image. “We are developing technology to detect alien life in the universe,” said center Director Don Figer. “Our work supports the biggest future NASA space telescope mission, the Habitable Worlds Observatory. For this project, NASA gave us $2.5 million through the Science Mission Directorate and the Space Technology Mission Directorate.” The Center for Detectors employs experts across many campus departments to work on the various components of the project. Knowledge of software, optics, mechanical engineering, thermal design, electrical design, and more is needed to make the technology possible. “NASA needs to know how well a detector works before they can use it in a future mission,” said engineer Justin Gallagher ’20 (physics), ’20 MS (astrophysics and technology). “To measure the presence of life on other planets, detectors in future missions may only receive a few photons of light per hour. We want to show that these new sensors can maintain this extreme sensitivity while exposed to the harsh radiation conditions in space.” One of the youngest members of the interdisciplinary team is third-year computer engineering major Anthony Doan, who began working at the center through a co-op. Doan worked on the software that takes in a reading from the sensor and converts it to an image. Prior to this experience, he wasn’t sure where he wanted to go in his career. Now, after working on a NASA-sponsored project, he sees a future in space. “Going in to this co-op, I was unsure of what I liked, what I didn’t like,” said Doan. “This job was my first experience where I applied something that I learned in class and actually used it in the work. It’s been amazing. I feel like I found my career path with this.” For more information on the Center for Detectors, go to the center’s website.

A third-year global business management student and racing icon Danica Patrick now have something in common. They both won the prestigious Gorsline Scholarship, which honors outstanding up-and-coming drivers in the racing community. ‌ Provided Kelsey Pinkowski is the latest recipient of the Gorsline Scholarship, which has supported rising racing talent since 1994. “I’m grateful for this step in my career as I continue to learn about racing every year,” said Kelsey Pinkowski, who was awarded the scholarship on March 15. “This is an exciting opportunity as I hope to continue to grow as a race driver and a student of the sport. I'm looking forward to seeing what's next.” John Gorsline, founder of the Gorsline Insurance Company, created the scholarship to promote motorsports and recognize young future championship drivers. Along with Patrick, previous winners include Josef Newgarden, Ricky Steinhouse Jr., and Katherine Legge.  “We had some talented young drivers in consideration for this year’s scholarship and are happy to present the scholarship to Kelsey, who has shown great progress in her racing craft this past year,” Gorsline said. Pinkowski, a Brighton, N.Y., native, didn’t decide to pursue racing until the summer before her senior year of high school in 2021. “Originally, this was supposed to be a one-and-go thing, just to scratch an itch and see if I like it,” Pinkowski said. “After a while, I talked to my dad, told him that I really liked the sport, and it was full throttle from there.” She made her pro-racing debut in 2024, after being discovered by Swedish race car driver Nic Jonsson, who raced in the Indy Racing League and NASCAR circuits. Pinkowski joined the Kiwi Crosslink team of the U.S. Formula 4 (F4) Championship midseason and posted impressive results, including a second-place finish at Watkins Glen in the SCCA Majors. Pinkowski has a busy 2025 season ahead of her. She is one of two full-time female drivers in the Ligier Junior Formula Championship, which opens its season March 27-30 in New Orleans. She also is racing internationally for the first time, as the only American driver in Japan’s F4 Kyojo Cup, which begins on May 10. She does all of this on top of being a full-time student. She decided to major in global business management, she said, so she can market her own career. “As I continue throughout my racing career, I’ve started to see it less as just me racing, and more as a brand,” Pinkowski said. “I wanted that business mindset.” Her professors, she said, have helped her navigate coursework while training and competing internationally. “A lot of them are surprised but very supportive,” Pinkowski said. “The first reaction I always get is, ‘oh you’re a race car driver?’ They all ask questions to get familiar with the sport and what I do. I’m grateful for their support.”

Yusef Ibrahim’s campus and community activities keep him very busy, but the fourth-year electrical and computer engineering technology (ECET) major has found a way to balance them all. In just the past year, he founded a peer mentoring program called Student Engineering Professionals (SEP), completed a co-op at General Motors in Flint, Mich., and returned as a teaching assistant for the College of Engineering Technology’s Introduction to Circuits course.  He did all of this just after publishing another book of poetry and a series of videos to highlight concepts in different engineering technology courses.  And a little-known fact, Ibrahim retains a place on the national list of fastest Rubik’s cube solvers. Ibrahim, who is also an RIT performing arts scholar, talked about how his peer mentoring program was established and how his connections to the arts, teaching and technology are influencing his careers plans and those of his classmates. What is the Student Engineering Professionals program? Who is involved and how it is conducted? SEP is a new student-led mentoring program that pairs second and third-year students looking for co-ops with upper class peers with co-op experience. SEP focuses on the career side of things, because finding that first co-op can be difficult. Our team is made of three mentors, and we work closely with the ECET department. This past semester we had seven mentees. I built it on a three-part idea with the first part a check-in. This is to form a personal connection with the mentee. Then it’s deadlines and details where we’d like them to accomplish tasks to better prepare them for career fair, managing coursework, or time management. This can include creating a portfolio website, remaking a resume, or creating a study plan. We try to cater it to individual needs. And the last part is reflection and intention. If you want to change, you have to know what you need to change first.  Reflection is about previous experience—what happened, what went well, what did not go as well as expected? And then you have to intend to make change. Why is a program like this necessary? I think it’s the cohesion of academics, career and social that really helps. Students have to find a balance between classes, campus jobs, extracurriculars all within the first year. If a student is unable to do that, the next year isn’t any easier. Classwork gets more difficult, and workload becomes more intensive. You could have circuit courses, a coding course, signal courses, or advanced math classes on top of your electives.  New housing arrangements or more responsibilities can affect the 2nd & 3rd year as well. With so many challenges piling up, SEP offers guidance, insight, and reassurance by connecting students with peers who have faced the same obstacles. Why did you choose engineering technology? I love analog circuits. It is my No. 1 passion. Anything closely associated with that I’ll be happy to do that in my career. During my second year, after I transferred into this college, I took Circuits 1, and I was exposed to a very different environment. We had one TA and one professor for a 16-person lab, and those first TAs were great role models for me. So, the next semester, I became a lecture TA. Your website states, “An electrical engineer by choice, and a teacher by heart.” What does this mean for you? Since I have been doing this, I’m crossing over to about 280 students who I have had the great opportunity to mentor or TA for. Being able to have an impact on other’s college experience provides so much joy.  In that short amount of time, my role has transcended from just a student position to a hobby, my passion, and hopefully my future vocation. Our majors have countless different job roles and titles, so it is very important to share information and experiences. The department has been more and more into encouraging this student-to-student experience—and I think it’s amazing. We can share experiences of classes, or co-ops; we can learn more about what we want to do and help other people. I’d also like to a professor in higher education. I’d love to do that. That would be my dream goal.

When Kwaku Alston ’94 (photography) photographed Betty White, his impression was that she was “100 percent real and authentic.” Over a decade later, his portrait of the actress inspired the United States Postal Service’s new Betty White Commemorative Forever Stamp. ‌ Billy Bennight Kwaku Alston ’94 (photography). Artist Dale Stephanos created an illustration of White using Alston’s photo as reference. Originally taken for her book, If You Ask Me (And of Course You Won’t), Alston says the energy in White’s eyes is what sets the portrait apart. “The artist has a beautiful way of illustrating. It was a great collaboration because he retained that sparkle in her eye that I captured, elevated it to the next level, and gave it some extra magic,” said Alston, a Los Angeles-based photographer and director. His photograph becoming a piece of American history is not only an honor, but a full-circle moment for Alston’s life and career. His father, who passed away shortly before White, worked for the Postal Service. “At this point in my career, the accolades are more about what they signify in our culture,” said Alston. “I feel like my father is up in heaven with Betty White toasting and sprinkling stardust on me. I couldn’t ask for more.” In addition to White, Alston has photographed some of the “most famous faces” of our time—including Barack and Michelle Obama, Beyoncé, Willie Nelson, Chadwick Boseman, Brad Pitt, and a host of other Oscar and Grammy winners. His diverse repertoire of clients includes The New York Times Magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, The New Yorker, Apple, Amazon Studios, Disney, Sony Music, Netflix, and HBO.

A trip to the Dominican Republic (DR) during spring break has given a group of RIT students a new perspective on access to healthcare delivery, public-health initiatives, medical education, and emergency services in another country. ‌ John Oliphant A little boy learns to floss his teeth with the encouragement of physician assistant students Maddie Johnston, kneeling, Makayla Rosettie, and Emma Sledzik. They taught Haitian and Dominican children about oral hygiene practices. Interpreter Fermin Perez Jean is at left. Thirteen students spent March 8-15 in the DR in the western region of Pedernales and in Santo Domingo, the capital along the southeastern coast, as part of their class, Global Healthcare Delivery with International Field Experience. John Oliphant, professor and director of the new global public health bachelor’s degree program, led the trip along with Mary Golden, RIT director of interior design, Jallah Kennedy, adjunct professor in the global public health program, and host partners in the DR. The group visited medical schools, clinics, hospitals, civil defense, and Red Cross facilities, and a prison, and met with emergency medical teams and firefighters. The students interviewed medical and public health professionals and medical students about their various research topics, and recorded their reflections in daily video journals. “This experience opened my eyes to other parts of the world that I have never been exposed to,” said Cody Lawson, a global public health major from Sherburne, N.Y., who described his experience in the Dominican Republic as “life changing.” ‌ John Oliphant RIT students Buyi Owo-Odusi, a biomedical sciences major, and Cody Lawson, a global public health major, gave a presentation about handwashing to remove dirt and germs and prevent illness. “I learned that the Dominican Republic faces a lot of challenges in the healthcare of children—access to healthcare, lack of vaccinations due to financial circumstances, and various diarrhea and respiratory diseases,” Lawson said. He is studying global public health as a stepping stone to medical school. He hopes to work in pediatric oncology. Lawson was struck by the plight of children they met living on a beach. “One of them didn't have any family. He had his own business of polishing shoes to make money and he was unable to attend school. To know that there are many children like this in the same circumstances is absolutely heartbreaking and motivates me to take action and show my support for these communities.” During the trip, the students gave public health talks and distributed gift bags of personal care items. They talked to Haitian and Dominican children about oral hygiene, illness prevention through hand washing, and puberty and menstruation for girls nine to 12 years old (presented with a local obstetrician/gynecologist). Their talks for adults focused on understanding blood pressure numbers and eating nutritiously. ‌ John Oliphant RIT students Ella Lewis, a biomedical sciences major, and physician assistant students Emma Tucker and Emma Sledzik, sit with Mary Golden, director of RIT’s interior design program, in an ambulance simulator. Program host and guide Raphael Perez Jean sits in the foreground. Abby Giacoman, a fourth-year physician assistant student from Rochester, N.Y., noticed how much is taken for granted in the United States, “such as access to first-line medication or an individual’s ability to attend college,” she said. “It helped me realize the true impact of inequities that exist in healthcare, and how they can affect the local population.” The students will talk about their experiences in the DR at the Innovations in Global Public Health Conference on April 12 and the Imagine RIT: Creativity and Innovation Festival on April 26. Their time in the DR was profound and emotional. Sometimes, circumstances overwhelmed them all, Oliphant said. “Seeing homeless children living on a beach and firefighters without fire-protection gear—these are things you cannot forget.” These experiences felt surreal when returning to life as normal after spring break, he said. The group will spend time during their following classes processing what they observed and finding outlets through action, advocacy, and compassionate understanding. “Our planet is incredibly interconnected and pathogens do not know national boundaries. COVID-19, Ebola, West Nile virus, Zika—they may start at other places but they don’t stay there,” Oliphant said. He continued, ”My goal for this program is to help students understand that none of us get to pick where we are born and that we are all citizens of this shared planet. We should work together to make sure people everywhere have what they need to reach their full potential in life.”

Kwaku Alston ’94 (photography) has been named RIT’s Outstanding Alumnus for 2024-2025. Established by the Office of the President in 1952, it is the highest honor RIT can bestow upon a graduate. “To receive this award is an honor and it reaffirms that I’m on the right path,” said Alston. “It also comes with a responsibility and great opportunity to do something incredible and leave my mark here. Not just for me, but for the students who have come after me.” ‌ Kwaku Alston Alston’s portrait of Beyoncé is one of a series of portraits he created to promote the 2019 movie, The Lion King. Alston is a photographer and director based in Los Angeles who specializes in celebrity, editorial, and advertising portraits. After graduating from RIT, Alston got his start in New York City working with major magazines and ad agencies. Today, his many and diverse clients include The New York Times Magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, The New Yorker, Apple, Amazon Studios, Disney, Sony Music, Netflix, and HBO. When it comes to his portrait subjects, Alston has photographed some of the “most famous faces” of our time—including Barack and Michelle Obama, Beyoncé, Willie Nelson, Chadwick Boseman, Brad Pitt, and a host of other Oscar and Grammy winners. His portrait of actress Betty White inspired the 2025 United States Postal Service’s Commemorative Forever Stamp. ‌ Kwaku Alston Kwaku Alston has photographed former President Barack Obama and his family on multiple occasions. Alston always carries a camera with him in anticipation of being inspired by things happening in everyday life. The key to success in a creative industry, he says, is for artists to stay dedicated and in tune with their heart and gut instincts. “I don’t have much time to sit back and reflect on each photo I’ve taken. When I look back, it’s all a blur and feels like a dream,” said Alston. “Surviving for this long and flourishing in this industry is incredible. I just keep moving and keep pushing forward, and I’m grateful that people keep hiring me to do what I love.” The award will be presented to Alston during Academic Convocation on May 9.