RISD Community Contributes a Record-Breaking $32 Million as 150th Celebrations Begin

RISD’s global community broke a record in the fiscal year that ended on June 30, 2026, contributing $32 million in support of student financial aid, teaching, and learning at the college and RISD Museum. The collective generosity of foundations, corporations, and 2,142 individual donors shattered the previous fundraising record of $30.6 million set in 2019. Notably, the overall fundraising total for 2026 rises to $34.5 million when planned gifts and pledges—gifts that have been committed but not yet received—are included. The achievement comes just as the 2026–27 academic year gets underway and RISD celebrates the 150th anniversary of its founding in 1877. 

“This is a historic year and a moment to recognize the strength of the RISD community with great gratitude and respect,” says Amanda Clark MacMullan, vice president of Institutional Advancement. “Truly, our community came through supporting RISD’s enduring vision. So many people endorsed the college and museum’s commitment to human creativity, honoring diverse views, and taking an inclusive approach.” 

In 2026, RISD received its greatest-ever single outright gift in support of students and faculty. A $20 million gift from the Maxwell/Hanrahan Foundation, cofounded by Delle Maxwell 74 TX and her husband Pat Hanrahan, established the Maxwell Scholarship Fund and the Maxwell Global Perspectives Faculty Fund. Beginning in the 2027–28 academic year, these funds will add eight new, fully funded tuition scholarships for undergraduates and endow two new faculty positions and one rotating visiting residency for scholars, artists, designers, and architects representing global art-making traditions.

“So many people endorsed the college and museum’s commitment to human creativity, honoring diverse views, and taking an inclusive approach.” 

Amanda Clark MacMullan

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RISD President Crystal Williams applauded these initiatives, saying that in addition to advancing RISD’s vision of remaining among the best, most dynamic art and design schools in the world, they would “ensure that the educational path is open and accessible to the next generation of creatives and that once here, they are able to learn the broadest array of traditions and expertise possible.” 

In 2026, RISD received $7.6 million in additional endowed commitments, permanently invested funds that provide support year after year. Over 100 donors supported specific priorities including scholarships, acquisitions at the RISD Museum, and the Materials Fund, which helps students purchase art and course supplies. Bob DiMuccio, chair of the RISD Museum Board of Governors and a member of RISD’s Board of Trustees, and his wife Rena made a $250,000 unrestricted endowment gift. “We are so grateful to Bob and Rena DiMuccio,” MacMullan says. “Their gift benefits RISD in the short- and long-term and is a powerful statement about the valuable work of the college and museum.”

Immediate-use gifts were a priority for many donors. An anonymous donor tripled stipend support for students undertaking internships in the summer of 2026, while others provided for scholarships and materials purchases. Donors also supported the RISD Fund, which supports all aspects of life and learning at the college, with $2.1 million in 2026. 

Donors gave $417,152 to the Museum Annual Fund, supporting the RISD Museum’s educational programming, mentoring and training, public and community engagement, and more. Many chose to rally around unrestricted giving during RISD’s second annual RISD Giving Day on March 18, 2026. Together, 445 RISD community members from 37 states and nine countries raised $373,644 for the college and museum. 

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Corporations and foundations gave over $1.8 million in gifts and grants for priorities ranging from student financial aid to public engagement with art. The Balfour Foundation granted $75,000 in scholarship and operational support for Project Open Door, a free art and design education program for Rhode Island high school students based in the Teaching + Learning in Art + Design department. Santander Bank broadened access with $465,000 of need-based scholarship funding for RISD students. In addition, Santander is supporting professional development and networking through a $50,000 gift to the Trek Fund, an annual summer program that brings students to creative industry hubs. 

At the RISD Museum, corporation and foundation support was critical in making exhibitions come to life, including The Artistry and Reunion of Two Surimono Albums. Sponsored by Bank of America, the exhibition is also supported by grants from E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation and the Japan Foundation, with additional program support provided by the IFPDA Foundation and the Felicia Fund. The ongoing exhibition brings together extraordinary albums of woodblock prints from the Chiba City Museum of Art in Japan and the museum’s collection, offering a window into Japan’s art and literary scene in the 1800s.

RISD saw heightened participation from its global community in 2026. Membership in the Jesse + Helen Rowe Metcalf Society and 1877 Society grew, and 114 faculty and staff, who see how life unfolds at the institution every day, made gifts to the college and museum. Not to be left out, students helped unlock $10,000 for RISD by finding and turning in 10 RISD-clad stuffed bears hidden across campus on RISD Giving Day.

“As we begin to celebrate our 150th anniversary year, we see people investing in the day-to-day and the long-term success of the institution,” MacMullan says. “The care, enthusiasm, and trust our community offers is a testament to the importance of RISD’s mission and is at the heart of RISD’s longevity.”

Gillian Kiley
September 11, 2026