Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) was formed at the merger of two former institutes: The Rochester Anthenaeum and the Mechanics Institute, founded in 1829 and 1885 respectively. The RIT name was adopted in 1944, a few decades before they made their big move. The first bachelor of science was awarded in 1955, and they made the decision to move out of Downtown Rochester in 1961; leading up to this decision, following the post WWII baby boom, enrollment exploded and the campus needed to expand.
The Henrietta campus opened in 1968, where the first class in Henrietta started. Part of this class was the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, a federally sponsored program.
A frequent question about the Henrietta campus is "Why is everything the same brick?" and to that, the answer isn't entirely clear. Through some surface-level research, the campus was constructed at a time when Brutalism was a common architectural idea. Beyond that, each building is unique in it's own right, from interesting shapes and sizes, to that of what they contain. Moreover, the brick is a special unique blend called the "RIT Blend" that was made specifically for the construction of the campus that you won't find anywhere else (credit).
Page contributed by Jacob Brodeur, Cole Mesiti