Rochester institute of technology

It is unclear when the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) first admitted minority students. However, it appears as though the first African American students entered the Rochester Athenaeum and Mechanics Institute (renamed RIT in 1944) during the early 1900s. For instance, in 1906 Fredericka Sprague, the granddaughter of Frederick Douglass, took classes at the Institute. There are several other instances of African American students attending the school during the early 20th century as well. In 1968, the Policy Committee began to look at the role of "disadvantaged students" on RIT's campus. Although this term did not specifically refer to minority students, many of these disadvantaged pupils were inner city students from minority populations. Gradually more services were added for minority students on campus. In 1969, a black studies program was offered with courses such as "Afro-American History," ""Nativism, Racism, and Anti-Semitism," "West African History," and "Sociology of Intergroup Relations." In 1980, a plan was developed to increase the number of minority and disadvantaged students in the RIT community, both faculty and students. Then, in 2000 the North Star Center for Academic Success and Cultural Affairs was established as part of an initiative to increase student retention at the college, particularly among minority students. As of 2011, RIT's student body was made up of over 1,400 international students from 100 different countries. In addition, more than 2,000 of the university's students were non-white. As of 2011, the North Star Center, along with the Office for Diversity and Inclusion, still played an important role on RIT's campus.

Although RIT can trace its origins back to the founding of the Rochester Athenaeum in 1829, the modern form of the institution was created in 1891 when the Rochester Athenaeum merged with the newly formed Mechanics Institute (founded 1885). The university started as a way to train individuals for careers in the dominant fields in Rochester, NY's manufacturing industry. As a result, most of the school's first students were local residents. However, as the school began to grow, an increasing number of students came from areas other than the city, creating a need for student housing. The first residence hall available to women was the converted Jenkinson Apartment building, referred to as 102 Spring Street. Then, around 1940, the school purchased the Fontanec Apartments and converted them into the Kate Gleason Residence. Kate Gleason Hall could house approximately 150 students and was used until the campus was relocated from the city of Rochester to the town of Henrietta. One motivation for the move was that the city's inner loop was to be constructed through the middle of RIT's campus. Once the campus was moved to Henrietta, Kate Gleason Hall was destroyed to make room for the inner loop.