News

Troy, N.Y. — Armed with a microscope, sharp eye, and knack for design, Caitlin Piette isn’t shy about letting her creative side influence her work in the laboratory — and vice versa. A senior at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Piette will graduate May 19 with a major in biology, bioinformatics, and molecular biology. She takes just as much pride in her award-winning biology research as her role in the growing of Rensselaer’s student-run campus arts and music venue, Ground Zero.

TROY, N.Y. — To educate and nurture today’s would-be entrepreneurs, universities across the country face a difficult question: Can innovation, risk-taking, and originality be taught in the classroom? For more than 180 years, students at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have been developing technologies, creating innovations, and forming business ventures to translate scientific discoveries into practical applications. Now the Institute is continuing to push the boundaries by broadening the definition of what it means to be an entrepreneur. 

Troy, N.Y. — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute President Shirley Ann Jackson has been elected a member of the American Philosophical Society, the oldest learned society in the United States. The honor puts her in the company of some of history’s most distinguished scholars — a noteworthy membership that includes the founders of the American republic and more than 260 recipients of the Nobel Prize.

Troy, N.Y. — Matthew Pelliccione came to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute as a freshman in 2003. After only four years, he is leaving with two bachelor’s degrees, a master’s degree, and a set of prestigious fellowships to continue studying physics at Stanford University.

TROY, N.Y. — Innovative Engineering Solutions Inc., a technology start-up company founded by three undergraduate engineering students from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, won this year’s Tech Valley Collegiate Business Plan Competition. The competition — held on Rensselaer’s campus on May 3 — was sponsored by the Severino Center for Technological Entrepreneurship at Rensselaer’s Lally School of Management & Technology.

Discussion will feature Shirley Ann Jackson, Thomas Friedman, Don Hewitt, and Mae Jemison 

Troy, N.Y. — Sky-rocketing oil prices, rising demand for reliance on renewable resources, and an increase in environmental consciousness have placed a newfound focus on “green” solutions to global energy issues. Following his May 19 graduation from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, student inventor Eben Bayer hopes to alleviate some of those growing issues — by growing.

Troy, N.Y. — No one can say Abigail Eldridge wasted any time during her four years at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.  Along with conducting cutting-edge bioengineering and nanotechnology research, she served in Rensselaer’s student government, played on three varsity sports teams, and loaded up on extra classes. She also managed to sneak in a pair of internships, including one at the prestigious Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute. “I like being busy,” Eldridge said with a smile. “If I’m not busy, I don’t feel productive.”

Troy, N.Y. — As an Eagle Scout, it is no surprise that Gregory Ten Eyck would be an innovator with a deep respect for the environment. But he has taken these values to a whole new level, developing inventions that could lead to better fuel cells, reduce the impacts of carbon dioxide, and create the next generation of super-efficient microelectronics. Ten Eyck will receive a Ph.D. in electrical engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s 201st Commencement on May 19.

TROY, N.Y. — Mae Jemison, founder of two technology companies and the first African American female astronaut to travel to space, will receive an honorary degree at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s 201st Commencement on May 19 at 9:30 a.m. on the Harkness Field.