RISD Alumni & Friends Community How-To and FAQ

Have questions? Contact almabase@risd.edu

HOW DO I…

Log into the new site and claim my profile?

Visit connect.risd.edu and either log in through the login navigation link at the top of the page, or login / claim your profile through the button under the welcome message;

Once you have clicked on the login link or button you will be asked to verify your status.

Type in your email address, and hit submit. 

You will receive a confirmation code to your email, type it in or cut & paste   

Update my profile

Once you have logged in, navigate to where you see “Profile” in the top navigation. It will be on the right hand side. 

Once you are there you can:

  1. Change the visibility of your profile on the platform
  2. Update your contact information, like address, phone, or email.
  3. Update your contact preferences, like signing up for text messages and opting into email lists
  4. Add a brief bio about yourself
  5. Add or change your preferred gender
  6. Add your education (beyond RISD) and employer
  7. Add interests
  8. Add your social media accounts
  9. Add other details like birthdays
  10. For some options you can also choose what details are visible to others on the platform and whether it is available to anyone in the directory or just yourself and RISD staff.

Start a conversation or connect with other alums?

We love when you connect with alums in our community. There are several ways to start a conversation.

  1. You can start a discussion thread by posting in a club or group space or commenting on a post from someone else in the feed
  2. You can reach out to an alum directly through our Alumni Directory or map
  3. You can register and attend an in-person event near you or virtual event through our Events Calendar

 Find a club or group page?

  1. Navigate to the Regional Clubs or Affinity Groups link under “Connect”.
  2. All regional clubs and affinity groups have pages built for them
  3. You can sort by regional club, affinity group, or international club
  4. You can also search by name

Subscribe to club or group pages that I am interested in?

To subscribe to a club or group you are interested in, navigate to the club or groups page and click the subscribe button located on the right side of the page.

Even more good news. If you were subscribed to and following clubs and affinity groups in RISD Network, you do not have to resubscribe to those spaces, we have already subscribed you!

RISD ALUMNI & FRIENDS COMMUNITY BENEFITS

There are many benefits claiming your profile and being active in our Alumni & Friends online community. 

Interactive Alumni Directory & Map 

  1. Find classmates and friends across the globe
  2. Planning a trip? Find RISD alums in the city where you are going and reach out to ask for advice on where to go and what to do while you are there. Maybe even plan to meetup and reminisce about your times at RISD.
  3. Moving to a new city? Connect with alums in your new home and get tips on the best places to eat and explore.

Personal Profile

  1. Update contact details, location and preferences so that people can reach out and connect, and so you can be included on mailing lists invites to events.
  2. Choose your communication preferences, hear from RISD on your terms. You can update your preferences and change them whenever you want, so resubscribing is easy if you change your mind.

Multiple Ways To Connect 

  1. Message an alum through the directory
  2. Start a post of comment on a post in a club of group space
  3. Attend an event online or in your community
  4. Explore the Alumni News & Class Notes section, or share your own news
  5. Check out an upcoming alumni exhibition, or let the community know about your exhibition

Security & Privacy 

  1. Although parts of our site are publicly accessible, we have created spaces just for verified alumni users. Regional, International and Affinity Group spaces, the Alumni Directory & Map and other places within the site require login & verification.
  2. You control the visibility of your profile information in the Alumni Directory. You can even choose not to have your profile visible in the directory and map. Additionally, certain information on your profile is visible only to RISD Staff and is used to keep our mailing lists and internal alumni database up to date. If you have questions about how your information is used, please contact almabase@risd.edu.
  3. Email addresses are masked when you are messaging or replying to alums through the platform.
  4. Submissions to Alumni News & Class Notes, the Alumni Exhibition Directory, and the Memorial Listing are reviewed and approved by the site administrator before they are published to ensure they comply with the submission guidelines and the Alumni Code of Conduct.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Can anyone access the Alumni Directory and Map?

No. Access to the Alumni Directory and Map is exclusively for verified alumni. 

Can I remove myself from the alumni directory and map?

Yes, you can. 

We understand that there are reasons why you may not feel comfortable having your name and location visible to our global alumni community, so you control that visibility.

  1. Log in to your profile and click the “update profile” button. 
  2. Scroll to the “Profile Visibility Preferences” (it is on the left hand side)
  3. Check the unlist profile box.

This will unlist your profile from the directories on the site. You can still use your profile to update your information, like contact details, current address, communication preferences, etc. but it will not be available to our alumni community and will only be visible to the RISD admins for the site.

Can I message another alum on the site?

Yes, you can!

Search for their name in the alumni directory and click on their profile. At the top of their profile page you will see a “Send Message” button. This will allow you to email the alum with your message. 

Please note that for privacy reasons, all email addresses in our directory are masked, so you will not see their personal email address (and they won’t see yours), but, as long as the email address in their profile is active and attached to an account they monitor, they will receive your message.

Can I edit something that I have submitted and was published to the class notes & alumni news, memorial wall or alumni exhibition directory?

Yes, your submissions can be edited, you can reach out to almabase@risd.edu to ask for your submission to be updated.

Why did RISD Network change to RISD Alumni & Friends? 

The change reflects our commitment to creating welcoming and inclusive spaces that foster connections in our community. We recognize that your connection to RISD can evolve, and to support your ongoing relationship with the college, we need to provide a broader, more RISD-focused platform.

In thinking through how we wanted our digital spaces to serve you, we audited our existing web presence and listened to your feedback. Many of you shared that our current digital spaces, like RISD Network, do not provide the tools you feel are critical for engaging our alumni. We made the decision to move to a new platform, powered by Almabase, to provide a more holistic place to connect and build your community. 

The new name, RISD Alumni & Friends, underscores the importance we place on the multi-generational and diverse global community we support. In this new space, we welcome our alumni, families, students and faculty to engage with us and each other. We will continue to create exclusive content for alumni, but also hope to provide space for families, students and others to benefit from the experiences and knowledge of our vibrant community.