Making Great Strides
There has never been a more exciting time to be at RISD. This May, the Board of Trustees ratified NEXT: RISD 2020–2027, our new strategic plan to strengthen our ability to create just societies, a sustainable planet and new ways of making and knowing.
We build this road map from a position of strength. The demand for a RISD education has increased such that our acceptance rate is just 20.7 percent for first-year undergraduate students and 33 percent for graduate students. We have welcomed a group of 10 new faculty members this year to further RISD’s intellectual community. Off campus the RISD Alumni Association is rapidly expanding regional clubs and affinity groups and building new programs that offer alumni more ways to connect with RISD.
It is with gratitude that we celebrate our best fundraising year in RISD’s history—driven not only by the landmark $19.9 million gift from the realization of the Rayon Foundation Trust—but also by legions of smaller gifts from across our community that pushed the RISD Fund to new heights. These gifts, large and small, are having a transformational impact on the lives of our students.
It is heartening to see how our alumni, parents and friends are deepening their engagement at this critically important time. Thanks to our collective commitment, RISD’s future is brighter than ever.
