News

Optical physicist Joseph “Joe” Goodman and his wife, Honmai, have established a new endowed fund, the Joseph W. and Honmai Goodman Distinguished Professorship of Optics at the University of Rochester’s Institute of Optics. Their generous $800,000 gift is being matched by $1,200,000 from the Wyant Challenge, amplifying its impact. This investment will strengthen the institute, support world-class faculty, and help meet the growing demand for trained optics graduates who will help drive advances in manufacturing, defense and aerospace, healthcare and medicine, communications and information technology, and other areas....

The Pluta Cancer Foundation has committed $4 million to UR Medicine’s Wilmot Cancer Institute. The investment will establish the endowed Pluta Professorship in Breast Care to support ongoing faculty excellence. ...

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At the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry (SMD), we are committed to setting the highest standards in medical education, serving as a model for innovation and continuous improvement....

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A $3 million endowed gift from Jackie Sperandio establishes the Robert Sperandio Professorship in Entrepreneurship at the University of Rochester’s Simon Business School....

For 40 years, Robert (Bob) Sperandio ran Sporting Dog Specialties, a Rochester, N.Y.-based direct mail company that PetSmart purchased in 1997. Along the way, he made a difference in many lives by providing jobs, modeling excellence and innovation, and building a spirit of entrepreneurship that has since inspired many....

The Max and Marian Farash Charitable Foundation recently established a $500,000 challenge to support the construction of the Greenbaum Center for Jewish Life on the University of Rochester’s River Campus. The Farash Challenge is designed to encourage other donors to join in helping to build the center, which will be the new home for Hillel at the University of Rochester and a resource for all students and the broader Rochester Jewish community....

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The ups and downs of the past two years have left many feeling unbalanced and questioning what’s important in life. Some are rethinking their jobs, relationships, personal priorities, and more. In this time of perpetual uncertainty, how can we clear our heads and stay mindful and focused on what’s most important? Autumn Gallegos Greenwich, PhD, licensed clinical psychologist, assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Rochester Medical Center, and an expert on mind-body interventions related to stress and trauma, shares her thoughts on mindfulness, gratitude, and the science behind it all....

A $2 million endowed gift from Arnold Lisio ’56, ’61M (MD) and his wife, Anne Moore Lisio, MD, establishes the Lisio Distinguished Professorship in Italian studies. The Lisios’ generosity ensures that exemplary Italian instruction and scholarship will continue at the University of Rochester forever....

New Wegman Scholarship supports two East High grads; Dyanna Garcia ’25 and Deziree Garrick ’25, both graduates of the Rochester City School District’s East High School, joined the University’s incoming class this fall as Wegman Scholars....

Bianca Audrey Duah’s family came from Ghana, West Africa. She grew up New York City and was always encouraged to become a doctor, lawyer, engineer, or nurse, as were so many of her friends and neighbors. ...

As the full picture of the year 2020 came into focus last spring—a devastating pandemic, an isolating life of lockdowns and closings, a renewed racial reckoning—the University of Rochester community drew together. Over the course of a challenging year, alumni, faculty, students, parents, and friends pitched in to volunteer their time, personal attention, and resources to help ensure that Rochester emerged ready to succeed in a post-pandemic world....

A Day in the Life of Two Music Therapists; Within Golisano Children’s Hospital’s music therapy program, Rosemary Obi and Elaine Kong use music to help young people get through difficult times...

University Trustee Evans Lam ’83, ’84S (MBA) arrived in the United States with $180 and a four-year scholarship to the University. Today, he’s the managing director of wealth management and senior portfolio manager at UBS Financial Services and recognizes the important role that scholarship support played in his success....

A gift from Dr. Sidney Sobel ’73M (FLW) and his wife, Barbara, recently established the Dr. Sidney H. and Barbara L. Sobel Professorship in Radiation Oncology at the Wilmot Cancer Institute at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC). ...

Equipped with extended reality (XR) and other technologies, tools, and staff, Studio X is slated to open in the fall of 2020 on the River Campus. Inside Studio X, students and faculty will fully engage in multi-sensory experiences, such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). It will be where creativity and deep interdisciplinary learning will flourish, aided by the rich interactive experiences these new technologies will facilitate....

Sisters Ranae and Shanae McKenzie have done just about everything together for as long as they can remember. Born and raised in Jamaica, they are identical twins with identical passions. Both came to the U.S. for their undergraduate education and now are nursing students together. In September 2020, they both started the accelerated baccalaureate program for non-nurses at the University of Rochester’s School of Nursing (SON)....

“Many people think it takes a lot of hard work to take their fitness to the next level. If you play a high-level sport, it might,” says Cameron Apt. “But for most of us, it takes a consistent level of ‘just enough’ and ‘a little bit more than yesterday’ to shape our goals into reality.” ...

A lead gift from David and Dawn Klein recently established the Linde Klein Professorship in Head and Neck Cancer Fund at the University of Rochester Medical Center’s Wilmot Cancer Institute....

A lead gift from David and Dawn Klein recently established the Linde Klein Professorship in Head and Neck Cancer Fund at the University of Rochester Medical Center’s Wilmot Cancer Institute....

A lead gift from David and Dawn Klein recently established the Linde Klein Professorship in Head and Neck Cancer Fund at the University of Rochester Medical Center’s Wilmot Cancer Institute....

A lead gift from David and Dawn Klein recently established the Linde Klein Professorship in Head and Neck Cancer Fund at the University of Rochester Medical Center’s Wilmot Cancer Institute....

For Howard Spindler ’81E (MA), music started filling his life at an early age. The piano teacher came to his house every week to give lessons to his two older sisters. “I was just four years old, but I was so drawn to our family piano,” he says. “I begged my parents to let me play.”...

For Howard Spindler ’81E (MA), music started filling his life at an early age. The piano teacher came to his house every week to give lessons to his two older sisters. “I was just four years old, but I was so drawn to our family piano,” he says. “I begged my parents to let me play.”...

Dean Marvin ’73 and his wife, Laura, have committed $1.5 million to endow a chemistry professorship at the University of Rochester’s School of Arts & Sciences. The Dean and Laura Marvin Endowed Professorship in Physical Chemistry is the first professorship at the University to support physical chemistry, a field that explores fundamental aspects of how matter behaves on the atomic to molecular levels....

Robin and Tim Wentworth, University of Rochester parents and supporters, have committed $2.5 million to endow a professorship and a scholarship at the University of Rochester’s Eastman School of Music. The Robin and Tim Wentworth Professorship in Piano will support and recognize a dedicated faculty member, while the Wentworth Family Scholarship will benefit deserving students....

A lead gift from Dr. Lowell A. Goldsmith ’02M (MPH) and his wife, Carol, establishes the endowed Carol A. and Lowell A. Goldsmith Professorship in Dermatology at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC). The gift will provide permanent support to faculty in the department....

Lowell A. Goldsmith ’02M (MPH) grew up in Brooklyn, N.Y., one of three children. His father was a dentist whose office was in the front room of the family home. From an early age, Dr. Goldsmith was exposed to patient care. He saw his father treating people, developing x-rays, and doing all it takes to be a skilled, compassionate physician. Dr. Goldsmith was captivated by the science of medical care....