Michael Peres reflects on his 39 years at RIT
After 39 years of teaching in RIT’s School of Photographic Arts and Sciences, Professor Michael Peres says that he is most proud of the relationships he’s made with his students and colleagues over the years. As he looks toward retirement on June 30, he fondly recalls the memories he’s made on campus.
Peres has made many contributions to the College of Art and Design and the larger RIT community since joining the university in 1986—and his time at RIT was marked by many “firsts.” Peres was a founding member of the RIT Big Shot team and worked on the first Big Shot in 1987. A book he co-produced, called Images from Science, was the first publication of the Cary Graphic Arts Press, now known as RIT Press. He also taught RIT’s first distance-learning course in photography, long before the advent of Zoom and other tools that make distance learning more seamless.
Peres was the recipient of the RIT Eisenhart Award for Outstanding Teaching in 2003, which recognizes faculty members who excel at teaching and enhance student learning. He also received the College of Art and Design’s Gitner Prize and the Frank J. Romano Prize for Publishing Entrepreneurship. Another highlight of his career, he says, was serving as editor-in-chief for the Focal Encyclopedia of Photography 4th edition.
Below are some reflections Peres shared about his time at RIT.
How have you grown as an educator since you started at RIT?
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Peres joked that while he had two children at home, his campus family included the many students who sought his guidance and support over the years. Photo Credit: Michael Peres
My teaching at the beginning of my career was very fact based. But with experience, I started to realize there were so many more important lessons that needed to come from my being in the classroom. Lessons about working with others, problem solving, critical thinking, and professional practices. It wasn’t just about the specific subject itself, but about the personal learning. Seeing the evolution from an 18-year-old starting college to earning a Ph.D. or M.D. or growing into leadership roles has been a great gift for me.
But, I think I’ve learned more from my 39 years here than I might have taught. My fascination with photographing snowflakes was inspired by a student named Emily Marshall, who graduated in 2003. She saw an exhibition by Wilson Bentley, a snowflake photographer, and came back to campus saying she wanted to photograph a snowflake. I had never photographed a snowflake and, initially, I was a little hesitant. But I reached out to her the next day, and we set up a microscope in the breezeway between Booth and Gannett halls. It didn't work out at all, but we learned an awful lot. Now, over 20 years later, I am still doing it.
What are some of your fondest memories connecting with RIT’s photography community through the Big Shot?
Every Big Shot was an adventure, and it was a perpetual challenge to make Big Shot bigger, more interesting, and more inclusive every year. A truly notable moment was bringing the Big Shot to the Intrepid Museum. Going to New York City to talk with the management team of the Intrepid was exciting, but they told us we had to rent out the ship for $28,000 if we wanted to make a photo of the ship. We came back to Rochester like dogs with our tails between our legs but, with the help of Ed Lincoln (director of Alumni Relations in 1998), we were able to photograph the museum and we had this massive alumni afterparty. President Simone was there with the president of Fuji Film, and CNN featured us.
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After making the Big Shot photo at the Intrepid Museum on Oct. 28, 1999, CNN produced a story about the project and interviewed Peres and other members of the team.
Another Big Shot that was exceptional was when we photographed the Royal Palace in Stockholm. The Big Shot photo became the national Swedish Christmas card for two years. I have a signed card from King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia. After our visit, they put lighting on the outside of the palace. They’d never seen the palace lit at night like it was lit for the Big Shot picture. It’s interesting to think that we inspired change at the Royal Palace.
An interesting evolution we worked through was the transition from film to digital photography. In the earliest days of the Big Shot, we had to run home, develop the negatives, and then make prints. Then, we would run the prints to the television stations and the newspapers while they were still wet to try to get on the 11 p.m. news or in the morning paper. Hand delivering prints was a fun way to distribute our work. Now, we make a picture and 5 minutes after the picture is done, it's distributed all around the world.
What are your post-RIT plans?
I’m giving myself the year to not put any pressure on myself or make commitments. It feels nice to just dwell on what’s happened at RIT and celebrate the future. I’ve made photographs since 1972, so I have a massive collection of slides, negatives, digital files, prints, and all these things that need attention. I’m going to spend the first year figuring out what I want to do with those things.
I have two beautiful grandchildren and we’re going to do some traveling. I’ll take my dog for long walks and hang out with him. I’m on a committee at the Eastman Museum that I go to monthly, and I volunteer for the Friends of the Public Market by designing their newsletter. I also volunteer at a nonprofit called InterVol and I go there to sort unused medical supplies and equipment that is redistributed to developing countries. I find great joy in contributing my time and energy to important work like that.
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- Professor Emeritus Denis Defibaugh named 2025 Guggenheim FellowIn the early 20th century, American painter Rockwell Kent made several trips to Greenland to document what he called an “earthly paradise.” Nearly a century later, Denis Defibaugh felt inspired by Kent and made his own pilgrimage to the island in 2016. Like Kent, Defibaugh fell in love with the culture and landscape of Greenland. His passion and the photos he captured helped earn him a 2025 John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship. According to the foundation, this year marks the 100th class of Guggenheim Fellows, which includes 198 individuals working across 53 disciplines. Fellows were chosen from a pool of nearly 3,500 applicants. Defibaugh, professor emeritus in RIT’s School of Photographic Arts and Sciences, explained that he has been interested in Greenland and Kent’s work for as long as he can remember. During a chance meeting with the director of the Rockwell Kent Gallery and Collection, located at the SUNY Plattsburgh State Art Museum, Defibaugh came across a collection of photographs on lantern slides that Kent took during one of his visits to Greenland. Before then, Defibaugh had no idea Kent documented his visits in this way. “When I pulled the first one out, I said ‘wow, this is like a diamond.’ I was so blown away by them,” said Defibaugh. “Kent used the slides when he came back from Greenland to do lecture tours. Almost every lecture sold out, so he lectured until he made enough money to go back to Greenland for another year. It was a constant cycle.” Denis Defibaugh Katrina Zeeb in a traditional Greenlandic outfit worn for special occasions. When Kent lived in Illorsuit, this was the normal attire for women. After this discovery, Defibaugh planned his first trip to Greenland. He received a National Science Foundation grant to support his travel after several application attempts, and the photographs and observations he made during his 16-month stay were documented in his book North By Nuuk: Greenland After Rockwell Kent. The Guggenheim Fellowship will enable Defibaugh to return to Greenland, continue his study of native culture, and build upon his current body of work. Defibaugh said he will return to some of the villages he saw in 2016, including Uummannaq, Nuuk, and Sisimiut, but not Illorsuit. Unfortunately, the waterside village was abandoned in 2017 after a landslide caused a megatsunami on the Karrat Fjord just two months after Defibaugh returned to the United States. “Illorsuit was this little settlement on a beautiful, horseshoe-shaped black sand beach. On one side of the town was the fjord, and on the other was this giant black mountain. When the tsunami hit, the villagers had to evacuate and they were told they couldn’t go back,” said Defibaugh. “I thought a good reason for me to return to Greenland would be to see how people’s lives have changed since then.” Denis Defibaugh Nuka-Sofie Fleishcher Lovstrom reclining in front of her son’s painting. Defibaugh will travel to Greenland for roughly one month, from mid-July to mid-August this year. He said the knowledge and connections he gained during his first trip will give him an advantage when planning what he wants to capture during his upcoming visit. “I want to try to be a little more experimental with this trip,” he said. “I’d like to do something that evolves the whole North by Nuuk project. I just have to figure out what that looks like.” Later this year, photographs from North by Nuuk will be exhibited in the Rose Lehrman Art Gallery at Harrisburg Area Community College. The exhibition will be open to the public Oct. 6 through Nov. 7, and Defibaugh will give a lecture about his work on Oct. 16. More information about Defibaugh’s first visit to Greenland can be found on his portfolio website. Go to the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation website for more details about the fellowship.
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- Interpreter Richard “Smitty” Smith to retire after 46 years at NTIDRichard Smith remembers pivotal moments that led to his career path as an ASL-English interpreter. When he was 16 years old, he had the opportunity to see a sign-language interpreter at work. After that, he signed up for free sign-language classes offered at RIT. “It was these moments, along with others, that made me realize this was the work I wanted to do and that NTID was where I wanted to be,” said Smith. Forty-six years later, “Smitty,” as he affectionately known on campus, will retire June 30 from his role as curriculum support/materials development coordinator in NTID’s Department of American Sign Language-English Interpretation. Throughout his career, Smith, who started at NTID in 1979, has earned several awards, including the Alice Beardsley Professional Interpreter of the Year Award, the Department of Interpreting Services Interpreter Emeritus Award, the Genesee Valley Region Registry of Interpreters Service Award, and the Rochester Deaf Kitchen Most Valuable Interpreter Award. He has also twice received the NTID Advisory Group Award. “NTID has given me far more than I have contributed—a life, a career, and a purpose,” he said. “I was fortunate to be in the right place at the right time and couldn’t be more grateful.” How has the field of ASL interpreting changed throughout the years? The field has changed quite a bit. There is more research and new and different ways of looking at things and more Deaf colleagues interpreting and taking on leadership roles. There is also more open dialogue, which is truly wonderful. When I first started, there were no degree programs offered for interpreters—just training programs. Now, interpreters can earn a doctoral degree or specialty certificates, such as interpreting in healthcare. What will you miss most after you retire? Hands down, I will miss seeing all of the students—Deaf, hard-of-hearing, and hearing—grow and become leaders. I will also miss talking about ASL and the work that we do as interpreters. What are a few of your most memorable interpreting assignments? I had the opportunity to work in China and see the Great Wall. I was also able to interpret in the beautiful city of St. Petersburg in Russia. It was also a pleasure to work as an interpreter on the social work team within Interpreting Services for eight years. Those were the best years. What are your plans during retirement? I have plans to go to the gym, volunteer at the Rochester Deaf Kitchen food pantry, and continue with my hobby of making raised garden beds, rolling plant stands, and holiday ornaments from scrap wood and recycled materials. Oh, and I plan to take naps.
- AI brain-computer interface expert and former Oxford University professor joins RITFormer Oxford University professor Newton Howard is fueled by his fascination with quantum biology and neuroscience. He believes there is a future where we can not only understand the brain at a deeper level but unlock new ways to enhance cognitive function and treat neurological disorders. This fall, Howard will bring his enthusiasm and expertise to Rochester Institute of Technology’s School of Individualized Study as a professor of practice. Howard is the founder of ni2o, Inc., an organization dedicated to enhancing cognitive and athletic performance for those affected by neurological conditions. His career has spanned academia, the U.S. military, and the private sector, and he is known for transforming research into real-world applications, including having roles in developing technologies such as wireless hotspots, Google Earth, and Google Translate. He has several U.S. patents, presented at national and international conference, and has published journal articles, papers, and textbooks. As a former professor at Oxford, where he is still a member of the university’s congregation, MIT, and Georgetown University, Howard founded and directed multiple laboratories, including the Computational Neurosciences Lab at Oxford and the Synthetic Intelligence Lab at MIT. He is also the founder of The Howard Brain Sciences Foundation and C4ADS (Center for Advanced Defense Studies), a think-tank dedicated to data-driven analysis of global conflicts and transnational security threats. “RIT is a university on the cutting-edge of technology, the arts, and design, and Newton Howard is a perfect representation of our mission and aspirational thinking,” said James Hall, dean of RIT University Studies and executive director of the School of Individualized Study. “We are thrilled that Dr. Howard will share his spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship with our students who are always on the lookout for ways to pursue opportunities to make a positive difference in the world.” RIT’s Professor of Practice designation recognizes industry professionals with extensive experience in their fields who bring real-world knowledge and expertise into the classroom. This fall, Howard will be supporting RIT partnerships with alumni in the private and public sectors while continuing to conduct research that advances understanding of the brain and the development of neural prosthetics to treat brain and neurological diseases. As he looks ahead to interacting with students and faculty this fall, Howard says, “As we work together at RIT, we are not just shaping minds, but shaping the future. The greatest discoveries happen when we embrace the diversity of thought, challenge our assumptions, and learn from one another. I look forward to contributing to a community where both faculty and students are partners in the pursuit of knowledge. It is through genuine interaction, shared insight, and interdisciplinary collaboration that we can create meaningful advancements.”
