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The RIT Archives collects, organizes, preserves and displays materials from the Institute's past. Located on the third floor of RIT Library, it is housed in an environment that is temperature and humidity controlled for the preservation of paper and photographs. It forms the primary source for the study of the history and development of the Institute.


1829	1838	1847	1885	1891
The Athenaeum	The Rochester Athenaeum and Young Men's Association	The Rochester Athenaeum and Mechanics Association	The Mechanics Institute	The Rochester Athenaeum and Mechanics Institute

		1944
		Name Changed to The Rochester Institute of Technology

History of the Presidents of The Rochester Institute of Technology

A Brief History of How the Institute Developed

Rochester Institute of Technology, as it is known today, is the culmination of many years of growth and change. The beginnings of the Institute can be traced to the founding of the Athenaeum on June 12, 1829. It began as an association devoted to helping the Rochester community through the pursuit of practical and applicable educational goals. During its' existence the association became well known as a primary source of community education. Several mergers allowed for the Athenaeum's growth and success. It absorbed the Rochester Literary Company in 1830 and the Young Men's Society in 1834. In 1838 the Young Men's Association, an organization developed by Henry O'Reilly which intended to promote the moral growth of young men in the Rochester community was absorbed. In 1847 the Athenaeum absorbed the Mechanics Literary Association. This same year, community support waned for various reasons, mainly because of a depression. In the years that followed, membership declined and funding decreased. The Athenaeum was forced into obscurity by 1887. Fourteen years afterward, the Athenaeum was virtually nonexistent except for a charter, the board members, and approximately three thousand dollars worth of funds.

In 1891 The Athenaeum merged with The Mechanics Institute. The origin of the Mechanics Institute can be traced back to 1885. John Bausch and Henry Lomb had been looking for lens grinders, but could not find anyone with the technical skills to fill the positions. Max Lowenthal and Henry Lomb, acquaintances at the time, shared the interest of developing a technical training school in Rochester. As a result of this interest as well as the financial support of many of the city's manufacturers, the Mechanics Institute came into being. The Institute proposed to promote practical education that would enable people to develop skills applicable toward an occupation. Night instruction was offered free of charge. Classes were held in freehand and mechanical drawing, design, physics, and mathematics. Enrollment eventually became so high that the Institute had to relocate several times, and eventually began offering daytime classes and charging tuition. Enrollment at the Institute went from 480 at its' onset to over 1000 by 1890. In 1891 an agreement had been made between the Mechanics Institute and the Athenaeum that placed members of the Board from the Athenaeum on the Board of the Mechanics Institute and allowed the Mechanics Institute to acquire the remaining funds from the Athenaeum. The Institute was known as The Rochester Athenaeum and Mechanics Institute and remained so until 1944 when under the direction of President Mark Ellingson, the school changed it's name to The Rochester Institute of Technology.

Rochester Institute of Technology Presidents

Name	Entered into Office	Inauguration	Left Office
Carleton B. Gibson	1910		1916
James F. Barker	1916		1919
Royal Bailey Farnum	1919		1921
John Arthur Randall	1922		1936
Mark Ellingson	1936		1969
Paul Ausborn Miller	1969	October 1, 1969	1979
M. Richard Rose	1979	May 25, 1979	1993
Albert Simone	1993	April 5, 1993	Present

Carleton B. Gibson was chosen as the first president of the Mechanics Institute in July of 1910. The Institute had been searching for a president for the school for ten years. Steady growth and enrollment at the school required that an Institute head be appointed. The Mechanics Institute actually had remained without a president for twenty-five years. Carleton Gibson graduated from the University of Georgia and had taught Greek and Latin. He had also been the Superintendent of Schools in Columbus Georgia. He placed emphasis on industrial education and did not propose any immediate or drastic changes to the Institute upon his arrival. By 1912 however, he had managed to have the institute adopt a policy of allowing students to work half of their time of study in industry and spend half of their time attending classes. This method of study which would later be referred to as a "co-op". Gibson left the Institute in 1916 due to an invitation by President Herbert Hoover to become a member of the American Commission for War Relief in Belgium. Initially his leave was to last for only three months. After seeing the amount of relief work which still needed to be done, however, Gibson asked the board to extend his leave until 1915. After conferring with the Board of Trustees, Carleton Gibson effectively resigned from his position in order to continue war relief efforts.

James F. Barker was asked to be the Mechanics Institute's second President in 1916. Barker was a graduate of engineering from Cornell University and believed in emphasizing technical training. He had begun the development of a technical high school in Cleveland when he was asked to become the Mechanics Institute's second President. Barker's main interest was the promotion of secondary education. He remained in the position until 1919 when he resigned in order to take a position with the Rochester City School System.

Royal B. Farnum assumed the presidency of the Institute in 1919. He was a graduate of Massachusetts Normal Art School, had been the acting director of the School of Arts and Crafts at Chautauqua, and the Director of Teacher Training in the New York State Department of Education. Between 1919 and 1921 more students enrolled at the Institute than ever before. This was primarily due to the school's appeal as an intermediary place of instruction between high school and college level education. Fund raising efforts carried out during his term allowed the school to remain financially stable. He resigned from the Presidency on June 10, 1921 to become the Director of Art Education for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and Principal of the Massachusetts Normal Art School.

John Arthur Randall was invited to be President in 1922. The Institute waited for a period of nine months before appointing Randall as Farnum's successor. During this time Carl Lomb and the Board of Trustees evaluated whether or not the Institute should remain independent or if it should become a city or state run school. The decision to remain independent led to the appointment of John Arthur Randall. He had been a graduate of Wesleyan College, had served as the undersecretary to the Secretary of War for the United States, and had served in the War Plans Division of the War Department. He had taught at Pratt Institute where he was head of the Physics Department, and at Cheltenham Military School in Pennsylvania. He also had been Vice President of the New York State Science Teacher's Association. Carl Lomb and John Randall engaged in a series of conferences that would benefit the Institute's future. It was eventually decided that the role of the Institute was to provide short intensive courses and not to award degrees. Randall left his position in 1936.

Mark Ellingson received his Bachelor of the Arts Degree from Gooding College, a Master's Degree from the University of Rochester, and his Ph.D. from Ohio State University. His career at the Institute began as a teacher. He was an economics professor for a period of ten years before holding the office of the President. He was also the first supervisor of the Photo Technology Department, coached the wrestling team, and supervised the Retailing Department. During his term as President the Institute was able to increase the endowment fund for the Institute from $1.5 million in 1937 to $20.8 million three years later. An important merger between the Empire School of Printing and the Mechanics Institute took place in 1937. The merger benefited the interests of the Institute because it provided a valuable training program for Rochester related industry. In 1944 the Athenaeum and Mechanics Institute was renamed the Rochester Institute of Technology. During Ellingson's Presidency, the Institute revised it's decision regarding awarding degrees. This decision led to a 38 percent increase in enrollment. The first baccalaureate degree was awarded in 1954. Under President Ellingson's direction the Institute began development of the Henrietta campus in 1961. He retired from office in 1969, after thirty-three years of service.

Paul A. Miller had been an experienced educator before assuming the office of the President in 1969. Miller studied agriculture at West Virginia University and received graduate and doctorate degrees in Sociology from Michigan State. He had taught sociology and anthropology for fifteen years, served as the University Provost at Michigan State, and President of West Virginia University. When he began his term the campus had just moved to the Henrietta location. Financial difficulties faced the Institute after the move. Miller introduced a budgeting procedure to R.I.T. which focused on simply not spending more money than the Institute had available and allocating funds as they were deemed necessary. This simplified budgeting procedure allowed R.I.T. to balance the funding for the Institute. The budget was balanced for the years 1971-1972 and has remained so ever since. Enrollment increased at a steady pace from 1969-1981 due to the increasing likelihood of college level studies leading to a job. He retired from the Presidency in 1979 to return to teaching.

M. Richard Rose served on The University of Pittsburgh's administrative staff and then a Deputy Assistant to the United States Secretary of Defense for Education before assuming the position of Institute President in 1979. He completed his undergraduate studies at Slippery Rock State College, received his Master's Degree in Counseling from Westminster College, and received his Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from the University of Pittsburgh. To celebrate the Institute's one hundred and fiftieth anniversary $1,500 scholarships were offered to 150 babies born on June 12,1979. There was a good deal of concern during Rose's term to acquaint students with more studies in the humanities. Miller and Rose shared the belief that students in a technical school should be exposed to more art, literature, philosophy, and culture in general. Partially out of this interest, and partially due to financial difficulties Eisenhower College became a part of R.I.T in 1979. Eisenhower was a liberal arts college that had begun classes in 1968. Due to failing enrollments and financial difficulties, however, it was forced to close in 1982. The Institute had made attempts to increase the liberal arts and humanities curriculum, and continues to stress the importance of incorporating these studies into a technical education. President Rose resigned from office in 1992

Albert J. Simone received his Bachelor of the Arts degree and Masters degree from Tufts University. He also holds a Ph.D. in Economics which he received from M.I.T. He has taught at Tufts University, MIT, Northeastern University, Boston College, and University of Cincinnati. He is the founding editor of the journal Decision Sciences and former President of the University System and Chancellor of the University of Manoa. He was inaugurated as President of the Institute on April 15, 1993 and is currently the President of the Institute. Throughout his career as R.I.T's President he has stressed the importance of science and engineering in relation to manufacturing. Under President Simone's direction partnerships with business, industry, and other professions have led to the continued success of the Institute.

A majority of the information found on this page was taken from Dane Gordon's book Rochester Institute of Technology : Industrial Development and Educational Innovation in an American City (T173.R66G67). More information on the history of The Rochester Institute of Technology may be found in the RIT Library Archives.

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