Rochester Institute Of Technology

Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), a private, tax-exempt research university based in Rochester, New York, operates as a prime recipient on federal grants and a collaborating partner on federal research contracts, delivering advanced-degree education, applied research, and technology development across science, engineering, imaging science, and deaf education disciplines. RIT competes on full-and-open federal research and education contracts and grants without set-aside designation, with a historical footprint spanning over four decades and current activity concentrated in fiscal years 2023–2026.

RIT's federal footprint is dominated by research and education grants rather than procurement contracts. The vendor acts as a prime recipient on 1,351 of 1,488 total awards (91%), with the National Science Foundation leading customer concentration at 346 awards, followed by NASA's Shared Services Center (150 awards, $31.4 million combined potential value), the Department of the Air Force (62 awards), the Department of the Navy (45 awards), and NASA proper (36 awards). Top customers by dollar value include NASA Shared Services Center ($31.4 million), Army Materiel Command Research Development and Engineering Command ($6.7 million), and NASA Goddard Space Center ($1.4 million). The top five customers account for 43% of award count and 52% of combined potential value, indicating moderate concentration with sustained engagement across 147 distinct federal agencies. Activity has declined since 2023—100 awards that year versus 91 in 2025 and 50 in 2026—with 87 awards (combined potential value $2.5 million) facing recompete in the next twenty-four months.

RIT's capability portfolio centers on NSF-funded fundamental and applied research spanning STEM education, advanced manufacturing, imaging science, semiconductor technology, quantum information science, artificial intelligence and machine learning, climate science, astrophysics, and materials science. Representative work includes: a $2.49 million NSF award for multi-nozzle molten metal jetting additive manufacturing with recycled feedstock (April 2025, Division of Civil, Mechanical, and Manufacturing Innovation); a $999,997 NSF cooperative agreement for a semiconductor workforce development model partnering RIT, Monroe Community College, Finger Lakes Community College, GlobalFoundries, and Micron Technology (July 2024, Division of Undergraduate Education); a $15.927 million Army Materiel Command cooperative agreement to establish and operate the Army STEM Education Consortium, a kindergarten-through-college portfolio of STEM programs with sub-recipients including ICF Incorporated, Griffiss Institute Inc., Peak Media Group, Tennessee Technological University, and the National Science Teaching Association (February 2026); and a $1.7 million NASA grant for Landsat image systems support (September 2024, Shared Services Center). RIT also holds significant engagement in federal research training programs: a $2.99 million NSF Research Traineeship award for convergent graduate training in CMOS+X semiconductor technologies (September 2024), multiple NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) sites in computational sensing, trustworthy AI, and multidisciplinary STEM education research, and NSF CAREER awards in machine learning safety, trustworthy continual learning, energy-efficient computing for low-carbon grids, and advanced manufacturing pedagogies. NIH, NSF, and NASA also fund RIT's research on topics including radioisotope thermoradiative cell power generators, radiation-hardened CMOS detectors, jumbo phage head assembly mechanisms, antibiotic resistance in commensal Neisseria, digital coaching for fall prevention in stroke survivors, and smartphone-based dermatology AI.

RIT operates on task-order vehicles including AFRL IDIQs and Navy IDIQs, with 55 task orders against F0160085D0088 (the largest single vehicle), 5 against N0001479C0598, 4 each against N0001479C0666 and SP045004D0955, and 3 against DAMD1786C6002. These vehicles anchor RIT's Defense Department and intelligence community engagement.

Service Contract Inventory data covering federal service contracts above the $150,000 threshold shows SCI-reportable invoiced revenue of $3.6 million across FY2022–FY2024 (FY2023 peak of $3.5 million across 20.4 FTEs). Government-paid hourly rates on SCI-reportable prime contracts ran a median of $106.99/hr, with rates spanning $87.18/hr (10th percentile) to $126.80/hr (90th percentile). Across SCI-reportable prime contracts, RIT performed 100% of contractor hours in-house, with zero average sub-hours share—indicating RIT builds its own delivery teams on these specific engagements rather than relying on subcontractors. However, on the broader federal grant footprint (outside SCI scope), RIT partners extensively: as a prime recipient on cooperative agreements with the Army, it sub-awards to four named partners; on NASA and NSF collaborative research grants, it holds sub-awards from Cornell University, University of Rochester, University of Washington, Michigan State University, and others; and RIT itself subcontracts to prime contractors including MITRE Corporation (on an FCC telecommunications relay services collaboration) and Caltech (on the SPHEREx all-sky near-infrared spectral survey mission).

The National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID), a college within RIT, is a decision-relevant structural capability: NTID anchors deaf education and inclusion technology research, and federal programs (including NSF STEM education, Navy STEM workforce development, and Army STEM Education Consortium work) explicitly leverage NTID's expertise and deaf student and faculty cohorts for research training and workforce development. This positioning differentiates RIT in federal STEM education and accessibility-focused research.

RIT competes on research and education contracts and grants as a full-and-open proposer with no SBA set-aside designation. The institution does not hold positions on GSA Schedules, GWACs, or government-wide BPAs visible in this award data; instead, it operates as a primary research performer and education provider directly to federal agencies, particularly NSF and NASA, and as a collaborative partner on multi-institutional research consortia. Activity trajectory shows decline from 2023 peak (100 awards) to current run rate (50–91 awards annually in 2025–2026), with recompete exposure of $2.5 million over the next twenty-four months concentrated in research and education grants rather than procurement contracts.