Celebrating together in China and Rochester, led by the China Parent Network Committee.

The Ģ����ý is celebrating its 175th anniversary this year, and celebrations have reached new heights—literally—at the Great Wall of China. On June 14, 2025, the Beijing team of the China Parent Network Committee (CPNC) hosted a special event, bringing together more than 40 parents, alumni, students, and incoming families to welcome new members of the Rochester community and celebrate this historic milestone.

As a tribute to the University, on October 6, 2025. The piece entitled “Great Wall Hero Bamboo Slips” embodies both cultural and historical significance, featuring the ancient Chinese writing medium of bamboo slips, engraved with Chairman Mao Zedong’s poem Qing Ping Yue · Liupan Mountain.

The gift symbolizes courage, heritage, and connection, values shared by both the Ģ����ý and its global community.

In addition to the event atop the Great Wall, celebrations were held in Shanghai, Suzhou, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Shenzhen, Jinan, Chengdu, and a second event in Beijing throughout the year, hosted by members of the CPNC.

How a golf cart captured the essence of Meliora Weekend

For those unfamiliar with Meliora Weekend’s scale, thousands of Yellowjackets swarm the University every fall for a weekend of reunions, lectures, family fun, and connections.

It’s a huge orchestration that would not exist without the dedication of staff, faculty, students, volunteers, and vendors. The weekend acts as a love letter to the University written by and shared aloud by the many people behind the scenes.

Many things make Meliora Weekend so special. The traditions (Ferris wheel, anyone?). The food. The breakout sessions. The concerts. The biggest “thing,” however, is the people. From alumni celebrating their 50^th reunion to prospective students and their families touring the campus for the first time, all the Rochester campuses are abuzz with people who either love this University or who are about to learn they will love this University.

The golf carts zipping around campus and offering passersby rides perfectly reflected this range of campus visitors. One golf cart, in particular, experienced this unique cross-section of Meliora Weekend guests, highlighting the reach and impact the University makes across lives and generations. Riders represented graduates from the School of Arts & Sciences, Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Eastman School of Music, School of Medicine and Dentistry, School of Nursing, Simon School of Business, and Warner School of Education, reinforcing that no matter the building or campus considered “home,” Rochester is One University.

Meet some of the faces (and smiles) that were caught by Karina Anderson, director of regional advancement, who volunteered to drive a golf cart during Meliora Weekend.

Students, parents, and alumni are united to make the world a better place, with the University at the heart of their efforts. Together, we are deepening our commitment to Meliora–ever better.

Save the date for next year’s Meliora Weekend, September 18-21, 2025. We can’t wait to see you.

In his Wall Street Journal bestseller, The Restart Roadmap: Rewire and Reset Your Career, Jason Tartick ’16S (MBA) provides actionable steps for readers to achieve their vision of financial, professional, and emotional success. Tartick—an author, investor, entrepreneur, speaker, and Simon Business School alumnus—draws on his nearly 10 years in corporate banking and MBA coursework in accounting and finance to help readers reassess their priorities and redefine themselves.

“Many people set their career course in their early 20s and stay there without reevaluating what’s most important to them along the way,” says Tartick. “If you feel like you are stuck or moving in the wrong direction in your career, you’re not alone. Know that you can take steps to change—it’s never too late to reinvent yourself.”

Tartick believes that many people fall into the trap of following the expectations and opinions of others, rather than pursuing their own passions and dreams. He encourages readers to focus on their personal brand by identifying their differentiating values, interests, and strengths, and using them to create a personalized roadmap for success. He also suggests ways to drown out distracting noise and take control of what will bring people personal, professional, and financial happiness.

Fun facts: Tartick, a Buffalo, New York, native, gained widespread recognition as a contestant on season 14 of ABC’s The Bachelorette. He hosts a popular Apple business podcast, Trading Secrets, which delves into money and career-related topics. He also owns a talent management company where he works with celebrities to monetize their brand. He has appeared on various entertainment and news programs, too, including ABC’s Good Morning America, Entertainment Tonight, and Yahoo! Finance, and is currently working on his second book.

This story also appears in the summer 2023 issue of Buzz magazine.

Find out more about .

This story also appears in the summer 2023 issue of Buzz magazine.

Ģ����ý one year after the University was founded in 1850, Rochester adopted its motto of Meliora—Latin for “ever better.” Today, that motto, along with symbols like Rocky, Rochester’s Yellowjacket mascot, serve as tributes to the University’s past and emblems of the spirit shared among alumni, students, faculty, staff, and friends.

Since its creation in the mid-1920s, Rochester’s Yellowjacket mascot, which is based on the common North American wasp, has been portrayed in a range of styles, from club-wielding to cute. The current version of Rocky debuted in 2008, designed to reflect the strength, character, and competitiveness of Rochester’s Yellowjacket athletes.

Bee Campus USA: This spring, the University was awarded Bee Campus certification status from the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, the result of a two-year student effort led by Zoë Bross ’23. The certification comes with another for Bee City USA, from the same organization. These certifications recognize the University’s efforts to protect native pollinators by increasing the abundance of native plants, providing nest sites, and reducing the use of pesticides.

Take the quiz: which kind of Rochester mascot are you?

Learn more about Rochester’s symbols and traditions.

Has anyone photographed ‘The History of . . .’?

When I was a student, and each time I return to Rochester, I find Professor [John] Slater’s inscriptions on the front of the library (“HERE IS THE HISTORY OF HUMAN IGNORANCE,” “HERE IS THE HISTORY OF MAN’S HUNGER FOR TRUTH”) particularly moving.

I am searching for matching photographs—taken at the same time, from the same angle, with the same lighting, etc. When I was an undergraduate, I spent an afternoon in the library looking at historical photos and other documents from when the River Campus was first constructed. At that time, I was able to browse a set of black-and-white prints taken by Ansel Adams. But it’s been 40-plus years (!) since then, so I don’t remember whether the photos I am looking for were among those prints.

��—John Womer ’82

In 1998, then University photographer Joe Gawlowicz took the pair of photos shown here: these seem to be the only deliberately created pair in the Archives.

Ansel Adams visited campus in 1952 and created a portfolio of photographs to use in a capital campaign to fund the merging of the Colleges for Women and Men. Adams’s photographs only include one of the inscriptions (“human ignorance”). The 1977 cover of Professor Arthur May’s A History of the URochester, 1850–1962 features a dramatic photograph of the other (“hunger for truth”).

As you note, the texts were composed by Professor John Rothwell Slater. Hired in 1905 as assistant professor of English, he chaired that department from 1908 until his retirement in 1942. The October 1930 River Campus dedication issue of Rochester Review noted: “Professor John R. Slater . . . has virtually carved his personality on the front of the Rush Rhees Library for the inspiration of future generations, as well as the present.” His original compositions, or choice of quotations, also grace the library’s doors and Messinger Periodical Reading Room and the Meridian marker in the center of the Eastman Quadrangle.

Correspondence in the Archives between Slater and the University’s president Rush Rhees shows that formulating the inscriptions began in 1929. “There are plenty of familiar quotations about books, but they are all hackneyed by frequent repetition. Certainly, I would not quote Bacon’s recipes for readings. . . .” A deeply religious man, Slater also looked to the Bible: “The pessimistic dicta of [Ecclesiastes] come as near the goal as anything, but not for the young.”

One draft shows three pairs of suggested texts—glimmers of the final version alongside Milton and Emerson—to which Slater has added a note: “There is first the literature of knowledge and secondly the literature of power. The function of the first is to teach; the function of the second is to move.”

John Lorenz, deputy librarian of Congress, spoke at the 1970 dedication of the addition to Rush Rhees Library. As a teenager, he accompanied his parents on a 1930s road trip across New York state:

“I don’t recall how we happened to stop at the URochester campus. I was already an inveterate reader so one of the buildings we visited was the [Library]. . . . What really made a great and lasting impact on me were the two inscriptions on either side of the entrance, an impact which led me to take paper and pencil right then and there and copy [them]. I have seen many inscriptions since that day, but I have never again been impressed to the point of copying another one down . . . and this yellowing piece of paper has been in my files ever since. Looking back, I’m inclined to believe that if there was any single influence whichstarted me toward thinking of being a librarian, it was the impact and the meaning of these inscriptions.”

In submitting the final texts to Rhees, Slater reported on a meeting at which he and other faculty considered every element of the inscriptions: weighing the meaning, effect, and word count. “One member of the faculty doubted whether ‘ages yet to come’ are likely to be ‘wiser.’ Dean [Arthur] Gale said of this criticism, ‘If they are not wiser, God help them!’ And to this I add, Amen.”

Ask the Archivist features a question for Melissa Mead, the John M. and Barbara Keil University Archivist and Rochester Collections Librarian.

Kerith Overstreet ’98M (MD) from Bruliam Wines offers up these seasonal food and wine pairings

Rosé with shaved celery root, fennel, and apple salad with Manchego and Marcona almonds

Chef Tim Caschette created this recipe. He and his wife, Janine, own Avvino, a Rochester, N.Y. restaurant that serves American and global cuisine. Overstreet recommends pairing this not-so-typical salad with a versatile rosé.

Number of servings: 4
Prep time: 45-60 minutes
1 large fennel bulb (trimmed)
1 large celery root (cleaned)
1/2 red onion (sliced thin)
2 apples (sliced thin)
2 bunches baby kale
6 oz hard Manchego cheese
3/4 cup Marcona almonds
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Apple cider vinaigrette (follows)
Oregano black pepper oil

Slice celery root and fennel bulb paper thin with a sharp knife or mandoline slicer. In a mixing bowl, combine fennel, celery root, onion, apple, and kale. Dress with apple cider vinaigrette and then add salt, pepper, and parsley to taste. Divide over four plates and shave long shards of Manchego over salad. Finish with oregano pepper oil and almonds.��

Apple Cider Vinaigrette
1 cup apple cider (reduced by half and cooled)
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 shallot (minced)
1 tsp thyme
3/4 cup canola oil
Salt and pepper

Add cider, vinegar, shallot, and thyme to a small mixing bowl. Slowly whisk oil into mixture. Salt and pepper to taste.

Oregano Black Pepper Oil
1/4 cup fresh oregano leaves
2 tablespoons black pepper
1/2 cup olive oil
In a blender, mix all ingredients until smooth.

Chardonnay with baked cheese and caramelized apples and spiced bacon

Jim Farrington, the head of public service at Eastman School of Music’s Sibley Library, provided this recipe. Overstreet recommends pairing it with a mouthwatering chardonnay.
The wine’s acidity makes a good foil to melty cheese.

Number of servings: 12
Prep time: 45 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes1 8-inch round of Camembert cheese*
2 tablespoons butter
1-2 firm apples (McIntosh or Cortland recommended), peeled, cored, and sliced
3 tablespoons real maple syrup
Cinnamon
2-4 strips bacon
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder
Salt
Chopped nuts (optional)
Apple chips
*Note: Take cheese out of the refrigerator an hour before serving.

In a medium pan, melt butter, and add sliced apples and 1 tablespoon of the maple syrup. Cook over medium heat until apples are nicely caramelized. Remove from heat and add 1 to 2 more tablespoons of maple syrup and a dusting of cinnamon.

Lay the bacon on a baking sheet (line it with foil or a silicone mat for easy cleanup). Cover the bacon with brown sugar, chili powder, a little salt, and a sprinkling of finely chopped nuts, if desired. Bake in 350-degree oven until crisp, about 20 minutes. When cool enough to handle, chop on a cutting board.

Place cheese on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat or parchment paper. Top with apples. Bake for 5 to 6 minutes, then add candied bacon and bake for another 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter. Serve with apple chips.

Pinot noir and tangy cranberry relish

Overstreet often makes this as a side or a condiment. She also likes to serve it on crackers with cream cheese. The tangy cranberries and green apple acidity mirror the red fruits of Bruliam’s Sangiacomo Vineyard Pinot Noir.

Number of servings: 6
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup water
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon salt
2 cinnamon sticks (3-inch)
2 whole star anise
1 12-ounce package fresh cranberries
2 cups finely peeled and chopped Bosc pear (about three medium)
1 cup finely peeled and chopped Granny Smith apple (about one small)
3/4 cup golden raisins
2 1/2 cups finely chopped red onion
1/4 cup chopped crystallized ginger
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Combine the first seven ingredients (through cranberries) in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves, then reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes or until the cranberries begin to pop. Stir in pear, apple, raisins, onion, and ginger and cook for 20 minutes or until the fruit is tender. Remove from heat, stir in the fresh lemon juice, then cool to room temperature and discard cinnamon stick and star anise. Cover, chill, then enjoy.

Need a fun show to watch? Looking for a compelling podcast? Find some of our alumni in the spotlight as well as behind the scenes.

Doug Besterman ’86
SCHMIGADOON

This three-time Tony Award®-winner has done it all: musician, composer, producer, arranger, and orchestrator for film, television, and theater. He earned a GRAMMY Award nomination for Schmigadoon. This original production parodies 1940s musicals and features a backpacking couple who get trapped in a magical town.

Chloe Corcoran ’04
BEING TRANS

Chloe Corcoran—an LGBTQ activist, PhD student, and higher education professional—is one of four Los Angeles-based transgender people featured in the first season of this audio reality podcast. Through each person’s story, listeners can gain understanding and build empathy around what it’s really like to be transgender.

Jane Dubin ’78, ’79 (MS)
HOUSES ON THE MOON

Jane Dubin is a Broadway producer and board chair of Houses on the Moon, a theater company that also produces a storytelling podcast dedicated to amplifying unheard voices. The first season spotlights lives affected by gun violence, families with incarcerated loved ones, undocumented youth, and people in the LGBTQ community.

Siena Facciolo ’19
THE PROCESS

How do we build a life full of creativity? What inspires us? Siena Facciolo’s podcast, The Process, offers honest conversations between artists that reveal the strength, challenges, purpose, vulnerability, and joy of living a creative life. Her guests include musicians, authors, dancers, and artists.

Beth Greenwood ’22
A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN

Beth Greenwood—the first woman player in Yellowjackets baseball history and the first American woman catcher in NCAA baseball history—appears in this new series, which is based on the 1992 movie by the same name. Greenwood, who plays an opposing player without any lines, laughs when she says, “It looks more legit with me doing baseball scenes than the actors.”

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Tom Mayer ’13
BLIND DUET

In each episode of this podcast, two artists get two weeks to record two minutes of music. The twist: The musicians have no idea who their partner will be. Co-hosts Tom Mayer and Benjamin Kahn bring a combined 30 years of music experience to facilitate important discussions on creativity, the music industry, and connectivity—with the occasional Rochester alumnus as a guest.

Joel McNeely ’84E (MM)
THE ORVILLE

Joel McNeely is an Emmy® Award-winning composer and conductor with more than 100 motion picture and television credits. He has worked with such filmmakers as James Cameron, John Lasseter, Seth MacFarlane, and George Lucas. McNeely is currently at work scoring the science fiction television drama series, The Orville.

Learn why noses are broken on Egyptian statues and more from November 20, 2022 – March 5, 2023

Ancient Egyptians believed that deities, as well as the souls of the deceased, could inhabit stone, wood, or clay images, allowing supernatural beings to have a presence in this world. In those long ago societies, religion and politics were inextricably linked. As a result, statues held powerful ties to all three. People believed that rituals associated with those statues could give power to supernatural forces. They also believed that those powers could be deactivated by selectively destroying specific body parts and royal or divine symbols on them.

Striking Power examines the patterns of damage inflicted on statues and other works for political, religious, and criminal reasons—the results of organized campaigns of destruction. The exhibition also illustrates how damage to a statue can be interpreted to reveal who broke it and the motivation behind the destruction. View damaged works—from fragmented heads to altered inscriptions—paired alongside undamaged works for insight and a step back in time.