On July 8 at 11:37 a.m., RIT President Bill Sanders and President Emeritus Dave Munson announced via email that Caroline M. Solomon had been named president of the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID), as well as vice president of RIT. She plans to take office on Aug. 18, the day after longtime President Gerard Buckley will officially leave the post.
Buckley — who has served as president of NTID and vice president of RIT for over 14 years — gave Solomon a strong endorsement, declaring, “I’m so pleased that Dr. Solomon will be NTID’s next president. She is making history as our first woman president, and her extensive experience and leadership in STEM education fits so well with NTID’s mission… I look forward to welcoming her to campus.”
Solomon previously served as dean of faculty at Gallaudet University, a prominent Deaf college in Washington, D.C. She has an impressive record of partnerships built with international colleagues, invitations to present at various colleges and a 2017 Ramón Margalef Award for Excellence in Education.
Solomon is a Harvard graduate, with a bachelor’s in environmental science and public policy. When she first arrived, the university had zero staff interpreters. Halfway through her first semester, however, they hired their first. Her experiences as a Deaf student learning science there, and while earning her master’s degree at the University of Washington, would later inspire her to co-create a database of scientific and technological ASL signs.
Solomon is also a swimmer. Her past participation in the Deaflympics awarded her 13 gold medals and an induction into the Deaflympics Hall of Fame in 2020.
Solomon has been praised for her warmth, as well as her innovative and inclusive teaching techniques. She sees herself as a role model to the Deaf community, working to show that success is possible while providing the support to achieve it. “Once you believe you can do anything, the opportunities are just everywhere,” Solomon stated.
As the first woman to serve as president of NTID and vice president of RIT, Solomon arrives highly endorsed and is expected to make an impression on the campus community.
