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Rochester Institute of Technology’s artificial intelligence endeavors will receive $24 million from Jeff Harris and Joyce Pratt.
Harris, a 1975 graduate in photographic science and instrumentation, is an RIT Board of Trustees member and immediate past chair. Pratt is a President’s Roundtable member and College of Liberal Arts National Council chair.
Their donation will go toward an endowed directorship, three professorships, and additional support for students and faculty for the university’s AI Institute, expected to launch in early 2027. RIT says the institute will be dedicated to AI education, research, and responsible application across disciplines while also developing talent to guide, apply, and improve emerging technologies.
“Through my career, I have seen new technologies transform industries and processes, improving understanding and creating opportunities that people could scarcely imagine,” says Harris, who also has held leadership positions at Lockheed Martin, Space Imaging, the Air Force office for Space Acquisition and Integration, and the National Reconnaissance Office.
“What remains constant through technological change is the importance of people and their expertise, judgment, creativity, and ability to apply their knowledge to address real-world challenges,” he adds. “RIT has long excelled at the intersection of technological innovation and practical application, and we believe the university is well-positioned to help shape how human-facing artificial intelligence is applied.”
“This gift invests in the people who shape the future of our university: our students, faculty, and academic leaders,” says RIT president Bill Sanders. “As artificial intelligence evolves, it is once again people who matter most. The ability to guide, apply, and improve emerging technologies will depend on talented individuals prepared to lead through change.”
The Harris-Pratt Directorship, which will establish permanent leadership and support for the AI Institute, will comprise $5 million of the donation. The search for a founding director will begin this summer.
Of the remaining funds, $18 million, will be divided evenly to support three endowed positions named after Harris and his parents: the Jeffrey K. Harris, Jane King, and Gerald W. Harris professorships.
In addition, $1 million will be added to the J.K. Harris Endowed Scholarship, established in 2015 to support the Destler/Johnson Rochester City Scholars program. The program supports full-time first-year students from public and charter schools within the Rochester City School District and the Urban-Suburban Interdistrict Transfer Program with low socioeconomic status. Over 350 students have participated in the program.
“Through scholarships, mentorship, and research experiences, our investments at RIT extend far beyond the classroom. We are proud to support the students and faculty who will shape the future,” says Pratt, whose career includes stints as a Russian analyst at the Central Intelligence Agency and later Lockheed Martin. “One of the greatest rewards of our involvement with RIT has been seeing the impact that educational opportunity can have on students’ lives.”
This donation brings the couple’s total giving, which began in 1985, to more than $30 million.
“Jeff and Joyce have demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to RIT through their leadership, service, and generosity over many years,” Sanders says.
Jacob Schermerhorn is a Rochester Beacon contributing writer and data journalist.
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