Work experience and people skills give RIT exercise science graduate a leg up

Samantha Phillips is booking a future in hotel leadership. Phillips, a graduating hospitality and tourism management major from Avon, N.Y., has been selected for Marriott International’s prestigious Voyage Leadership Development Program, a fast-track career pathway designed to prepare high-potential college graduates for leadership roles in hotel operations and management. The path is competitive. Applicants complete multiple rounds of interviews and assessments that evaluate leadership potential. For Phillips, the rigorous process is well worth the outcome. “Many people who complete the program stay with Marriott for years, starting from the bottom and working their way up,” Phillips said. “It seems to be a common theme with Marriott. So just looking at that, I was like, I could see myself staying with them. And this program seems like a good place to start.” Phillips will begin her Marriott career working in event management at its downtown Philadelphia location. A 2023–2024 Outstanding Undergraduate Scholar and recipient of a New York State Tourism Industry Association scholarship, she credits RIT’s international hospitality and service innovation department with preparing her to succeed. She entered RIT through the business exploration track in Saunders College of Business, but an introductory hospitality class in her second year and guidance from professors and academic advisers like Mel Cerra quickly shaped her direction. That interest was reinforced by hands-on experience through student leadership in the Women in Business Club and Delta Sigma Pi, support roles during major events like RIT’s Brick City Homecoming & Family Weekend, and a trip to Marriott’s headquarters in Bethesda, Md., sponsored by the Saunders College Honors Program. “You learn a lot about customer service and creating memorable customer experiences,” Phillips said. “That did help in the application for Marriott because they kind of want two things. They want people who have the personality for hospitality and the personality for leadership. I think that my time at RIT really helped combine both of those areas.” Phillips’ embrace of the full student experience at RIT is a mindset shaped in part by a high school geometry teacher who reminded her that it’s okay to slow down and enjoy the ride. “You meet so many great people,” Phillips said. “There’s a real sense of community at Saunders. I walk into the building and always see people I know. And across RIT, it’s incredibly diverse. There’s every kind of person, club, and activity here. No matter who you are, there’s a place where you’ll feel like you belong.” That balance is exactly what RIT’s hospitality faculty aim to cultivate. The program combines a business core with specialized training in hotel operations, food service management, real estate development, and event planning. “Samantha Phillips embodies the qualities of an exceptional hospitality student,” said Jerrie Hsieh, professor of international hospitality and service innovation. “Her professionalism, work ethic, and passion for the field sets her apart. Our program is designed to prepare students like Samantha to excel in a dynamic and rapidly evolving industry. Experiences such as student-led organizations, site visits, and hands-on learning give our students both practical insights and long-term perspective.”

Brooke DiFlorio will launch her career as one of the first RIT Air Force ROTC cadets to be commissioned for the U.S. Space Force, the newest branch of the armed services. “I knew I wanted to be in the military and be an engineer. Space Force was a way to combine both,” said DiFlorio. It also provides the mechanical engineer in RIT’s Kate Gleason College of Engineering with an opportunity to apply some of the newest technologies she’s learning to keep America safe. “I was drawn to the Space Force because of its newness and the opportunity it offered to be part of something historic,” she said. “I was excited by the idea of helping shape the foundation of a growing service and being one of the guardians who would help pave the way for future generations.” Candidates apply for the Space Force by their second year of ROTC programming and proceed with recommendations from their detachment’s commanding officer. Cadets take a series of military science courses, and DiFlorio combined those with coursework in astronomy and mechanical engineering topics such as orbital mechanics. DiFlorio served in several leadership positions including her current role as training squadron commander. She oversees execution of training related to cadre drills, coordinates Leadership Laboratories, plans Honor Guard events, executes Reveille and Retreat observances every Friday during the semester, and provides extra training for newer cadets.  These responsibilities position cadets to qualify for Space Force training activities. Only a few cadets are picked each year, and all are required to go through extensive field training at Maxwell AFB in Montgomery, Ala. “It was an intense two-and-a-half-week experience that pushed us to our physical and mental limits,” said DiFlorio of her field training experience. “I had to quickly build trust and rely on fellow cadets whom I had just met upon arrival. We became each other’s support systems, working together to overcome the grueling Alabama heat and navigate high-pressure, stressful situations.” Space Force expands on the Air Force’s intelligence gathering capabilities toward more worldwide defensive procedures specific to cybersecurity, including satellite tracking and sensing. “We need to know how ‘space’ works, because space is a different domain. How can we defend ourselves in the future? Defense and deterrence—these are important,” said DiFlorio, who is from Chittenango, N.Y. DiFlorio will also be following in her grandfather’s footsteps. He also served in the Air Force, and although she never had the chance to meet him, the stories her mother shared about him inspired her. DiFlorio will participate in this year’s graduation ceremony and complete a final training course over the summer. Once commissioned, she’ll report to Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado to attend the Officer Training Course, a yearlong technical program to further refine skills in space operations, intelligence, and cyberspace. “I feel a deep desire to give back to the country that has given me so much. AFROTC has allowed me to experience college life while simultaneously preparing me to become a leader of character in the Space Force,” she said. “Upon graduation, I’ll be stepping fully into the military world—and I’m genuinely excited for the challenges and responsibilities that lie ahead.”

Over the past few months, RIT student Hannah DeFelice has looked forward to going to her internship office—a paddock in the center of a Holliston, Mass., farm—and spending quality time with her co-workers, a herd of 11 horses and three donkeys. But this isn’t just horseplay. DeFelice’s research to improve animal welfare is taking her to Cornell University this fall to pursue her doctoral degree in biogeochemistry, the study of how living things interact with the physical and chemical environment. The master’s in environmental science student is studying how the environmental conditions in paddocks and stalls, such as grass cover, soil condition, and space influence the behavior, health, and welfare of animals. Her work is grounded in the “One Health” concept, which explores the connectivity among environmental, animal, and human health. “I love working with animals and have long been interested in environmental science,” said DeFelice, a Maine native, whose work is being conducted through Equine International. “My research allows me to contribute to the animals’ well-being in a tangible way. Horses and donkeys are such intelligent and sensitive creatures, and it’s important that we understand how their environments can either support them or harm them.” DeFelice, who is supported by RIT’s National Technical Institute for the Deaf as a DeafBlind student, is also assessing insect and microbial populations to understand the risk of infectious diseases and parasites. She believes her research could have broader implications for the agricultural industry, especially small farms. “My hope is that my findings will help farmers and ranchers design better paddocks that improve animal health and productivity while also maintaining environmental sustainability, and influence actionable recommendations to improve animal welfare,” she said. With the support of faculty members, including Carmody McCalley, director of RIT’s environmental science master’s degree program, DeFelice has made studying the environment her passion. By incorporating research skills acquired at RIT, including GIS mapping and data mining, she is positioning herself as an expert in delicate ecosystems. In fact, she has traveled to the Arctic twice with McCalley to study permafrost, the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, and climate change. “What stands out to me about Hannah are her genuine love of science and research and her passion for making these more accessible and inclusive for those with disabilities,” said McCalley. “Hannah and I have performed many research projects together. It’s great to work with a student who enjoys doing the ‘dirty work’ and has the ability to focus and concentrate on tasks that some might consider tedious but are so essential to good science. She was also patient enough to teach me how to sign numbers so that we could communicate faster in the field, which I really appreciated.” DeFelice said she has learned to begin trusting herself and her instincts when it comes to her expertise. “Throughout my internship, I have been asked my professional opinions on many subjects, including animal behavior, and have become adept at field work, nutrient analysis, pollinator assessment, and so many other things,” she added. “All of this I have learned through my time at RIT.” DeFelice also participates in the Rochester Bridges to the Doctorate program, which provides scientific mentoring for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals to become strong candidates for doctoral degree programs in biomedical or behavioral science disciplines. 

Jayden Neal always knew that after graduating from RIT he would return to work on the technology side of his family’s dairy farm. What he didn’t expect was that he would do it with a product on its way to commercialization that changes the milking process. The Vortex is an udder washing and sterilization system that is lightweight, more ergonomic, and with improved nozzle and grip functions over the current system on the market. Neal provided the technology know-how behind the product, which is the first for his family’s startup company, UdderWays. Neal will begin work as UdderWays’ chief technology officer after he graduates this May with a bachelor’s degree in robotics and manufacturing engineering technology from the College of Engineering Technology. The company will be based on his family’s Orleans Poverty Hill Farm in Albion, N.Y. “I got exposure to a lot of the tools, processes, and methodology engineers use. It was really helpful having that knowledge and reinforcement, things like information in the circuits courses and PCB design led to developing a more efficient control system,” he said. ‌ Travis LaCoss/RIT Jayden Neal’s family owns Orleans Poverty Hill Farms, which has more than 600 dairy cows. When Neal was 13, he had already been experimenting with how to improve the equipment needed to milk the 600-plus dairy cows on his family’s farm. But it wasn’t until Neal could use his skills in robotics, manufacturing, and engineering processes that he was able to finalize the control system on the tool. “We are a third-generation dairy farm. We have quite a history here,” said Neal. “We always wanted to try to make things more efficient and try new things.” Preparation for milking is labor intensive, requiring applications of a sanitizer, drying, and stimulation of milk flow. The Vortex combines those steps, reducing manual work and chances of contamination. Neal, along with his father, Jody, who provided design ideas on paper, experimented with alternatives to brushes that might injure cows. The younger Neal 3D printed design prototypes to test. The result is a patented, lightweight, hand-held tool that uses a fluid-whirling operation rather than brushes. “Students come to programs like ours in the College of Engineering Technology looking to take fundamental engineering principles and apply them to solve practical problems,” said Beth Carle, professor and department head of manufacturing and mechanical engineering technology. “Jayden is an example of this success. He has used his analytical skills to identify a problem affecting not only his family’s farm, but the broader dairy industry, and then applied his technical and entrepreneurial skills to solve the problem.” There are more than 3,000 dairy farms in New York state, from small artisanal farms to mid-sized spreads like Neal’s, as well as larger corporations. All contribute to the nearly 15 billion pounds of milk produced yearly, the fifth largest producer in the U.S. UdderWays has received multiple awards, most recently, $500,000 from Grow-NY Food & Agriculture Startup Competition. Through the accelerator program REV: Ithaca Startup Works, Neal is exploring business requirements from certifications to seeking a firm to do the injection molding for the device. “People have been seeking alternatives and that led to other products, but those other products had some drawbacks, which kind of opened the door for us,” he said. “It showed a need for the product, and we are having a ridiculous amount of demand for this right now. We really hope to meet that soon.” Meeting the demand is within reach, in part, because of Neal’s choice for college. “I found that at RIT, there was such a wide variety of classes, clubs, and a lot of industry experiences. Those were some of the key reasons for me coming here and it’s been great,” said Neal. “Our company, it’s nothing I ever would have predicted, but it excites me that we are able to succeed, to get something out there that farmers like. Hopefully this might lead to more products down the road.” About the photographer Travis LaCoss, who took the images for this story, also will be graduating this May with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in photojournalism from RIT’s College of Art and Design. LaCoss started at RIT as an adult student, transitioning from a senior technician with BMW to photography and journalism. After graduation, LaCoss will begin a 12-week intensive visual documentary program photographing the people and the places of Harrison County, Kentucky, through a grant from the prestigious Boyd’s Station Project.

Ryan Larcom was once described in a profile by the Industrial Designers Society of America as a “designer trapped in an engineer’s body.” Far from trapped, his companies High Alpha and High Alpha Innovation collectively launched more than 60 startups and raised more than $400 million in venture capital during the last several years. Larcom ’07 (mechanical engineering), ’07 ME (mechanical engineering, industrial design) combined academic degrees and career opportunities. His multidisciplinary skills are an ideal fit for High Alpha Innovation’s venture studio approach for launching startups, even within established companies and organizations. “Why I loved those two degrees is designers inherently understand who they are designing for, what the unmet needs of humans are, and how to create delightful experiences,” said Larcom, managing director and Alumnus combines engineering and design to launch startups innovation executive at High Alpha Innovation. “Mechanical engineers know how to take those requirements and turn them into reality. What I realized when I hit the real world of large corporations is you are on one side or the other. You don’t get to do both, which was frustrating.” He channeled that frustration into solving a problem, and he developed a career that evolved from the traditional to the contemporary. As an undergraduate in mechanical engineering, he spent a summer in Milan at the Design Continuum, an international industrial design firm. The nontraditional co-op expanded his idea of how to create products well beyond mechanics. After graduation, he worked on research and development teams for automotive and engine giants Honda and Cummins. At Honda in Ohio, his work on vehicle interiors—structure and usage—won national design awards. He later relocated to Indianapolis to join Cummins, designing the world’s largest high-speed diesel engine, and eventually training with Cummins’ Corporate Strategy division. The jobs helped Larcom understand the role innovation could play in a company—and how he could influence that innovation by seeking to influence how companies designed products by first building the business case for them. It became an inspiration for him to seek a position with High Alpha in 2015. Larcom helps large corporations go from investment thesis to launching a new startup in 18 weeks. He leads partnership teams that work with corporate innovation executives to identify new growth opportunities for businesses. His teams develop investment pitches, some of them chosen by the corporate partners to launch as new startups. They structure investments and hire founders, among other resources. “I’ve designed my career because I didn’t like what was available in the corporate world, just like I designed my education at RIT,” he said. “I’m more than willing to credit the school for not only giving me that start, but also the mindset of if you don’t see it, make it.”

On one side of campus, visitors to the Imagine RIT: Creativity and Innovation Festival became game show hosts. On the other side, guests’ blood-oxygen level readings were measured using a redesigned pulse oximeter. That’s just a sampling of what thousands of people experienced on April 26. See photos from Saturday's Imagine RIT “Imagine RIT is an incredible opportunity for our students, faculty, and staff to showcase their creativity and forward-thinking innovation,” said Lisa Stein, director of Imagine RIT. “Each year, the festival highlights groundbreaking work in fields like artificial intelligence, computing, healthcare, and the arts—proving again how the RIT community leads with bold ideas and a hands-on approach to turning vision into reality.” This year, a record 434 exhibits were on display across the entire campus. Real-world applications As part of a collaborative capstone project with The Strong National Museum of Play, fourth-year new media design students worked alongside students from RIT’s new media interactive development program to create game prototypes inspired by old-school game shows. The goal of the collaboration, on the first floor of College of Art and Design’s Booth Hall, was for students to create prototypes of potential games for an upcoming exhibit, Beyond the Buzzer: Game Shows in America, set to open at The Strong Museum in 2026. The prototypes were showcased in six interactive Imagine RIT exhibits: Eye on the Prize; Path Pursuit; Overboard; Race to Riches; Battle of the Buzzers; and Ruin the Show. ‌ Scott Hamilton Fourth-year new media design student Kamy Bitely shows a visitor how to play Path Pursuit. The game prototype, resulting from a capstone collaboration with The Strong National Museum of Play, challenges two players to cooperate and move in-sync to complete the virtual obstacle course. While it’s not guaranteed that all the games will make it to the final museum exhibit, each prototype helped the museum team research and test the types of experiences visitors might enjoy. Alexis Mildren, from Mardela Springs, Md., worked with a team of nine other students to create Eye on the Prize, an innovation of the classic Simon memory game. She said testing the game with the massive audience at Imagine RIT was a golden opportunity. “The museum said our age range when designing the game was seven to 77. Trying to build something that little kids would enjoy, and older generations would find some nostalgia in, was a big challenge,” said Mildren. “Having the community support and play our game has really proven that we’ve succeeded.” Improving lives Mechanical engineering students in the Multidisciplinary Senior Design program redesigned a pulse oximeter to improve diagnosis. Their exhibit was in Institute Hall. Melanin, the chemical that gives skin its varied tones, affects oxygen readings. The students’ design assesses not only the oxygen levels but corrects for the impact of melanin. ‌ Traci Westcott Mechanical engineering student Isabella Cagno, left, demonstrates a pulse oximeter that uses wavelengths of light to assess a patient’s pigmentation. They integrated varied wavelengths of light into a second finger clamp that is connected to the Graphical User Interface (GUI), which collects blood oxygen content, blood pressure, and the important light measurements for the color sensor they designed. The combined data gives more accurate results, said Gianna Ippolito.  “We did not start to notice this until COVID,” said Ippolito, a fifth-year student from Rochester who transferred from Monroe Community College. “We found that it’s important to test a product that relies on light with a diverse set of testers. It is not often something that was considered until it is happening.” The students’ new prototype will be used on patients in the fall at RIT’s medical partner, Rochester Regional Health. Building a robot from scratch At the center of campus, CatBot, a quadruped robot designed in the spirit of Boston Dynamics’ Spot robot dog, was one of 30 exhibits in the SHED. Members of the Multi-Disciplinary Robotics Club worked on the design of the robot over four years. Different parts of the robot were shown in previous Imagine RIT festivals, but this is the first public unveiling of the robot. ‌ Carlos Ortiz Members of the Multi-Disciplinary Robotics Club, from left, fifth-year software engineering major Cameron Robinson, second-year mechanical engineering major Sophia Pagsanjan, and third-year mechatronics engineering technology major Rudy Rodriguez move CatBot, a quadruped robot. Cameron Robinson, a fifth-year software engineering and English double major and club president, has seen CatBot from its genesis. It started as an idea by a fellow student interested in soft robotics, a subfield of robotics that focuses on using flexible, deformable materials, an upgrade from the traditional, rigid nature of robots. This robot, while not fully mobile, is able to show off full walking motions. “These robots are like our babies,” Robinson said. “We love building and working with these robots from scratch, and it’s great to see the progress over the years. It’s all part of the human experience.” “My classes are often very theoretical,” added second-year mechanical engineering major Sophia Pagsanjan. “Making robots like CatBot is thrilling because you’re putting everything you’re learning in the classroom into action. I can see the results of my work.” CatBot is the club’s newest legacy robot, which includes Imagine RIT favorites like CouchBot, a comfortable remote-controlled modular loveseat, a small robot which can wave back to spectators, and a battle bot arena with handheld robot vehicles. Imagine RIT: Creativity and Innovation Festival returns on April 25, 2026.