Crystal Williams
As our 18th president, Crystal Williams leads RISD in advancing and amplifying the power of art and design in a changing world, and fostering a campus and community that centers equity and inclusion in all we are and do.
A forward-looking dream
“We are galvanized to create art and design spaces, classrooms, and practices that reflect the full breadth of human dynamism and a belief that what makes us distinct from one another is precisely our strength.”
— from President Williams’ October 7, 2022 inauguration address
A vision for teaching and learning
Informing President Williams’ work and leadership is her belief in RISD’s responsibility to amplify the talents of our students, and respond to their needs.
Select interviews
“Young creatives... have all the intelligence and ingenuity we need to solve our challenges and advance what is good, right and just among our species.” (Design Milk, Jun 30, 2023)
“The art world is becoming more inclusive. But as with all change there is much to do and a long way to go… ” (The Public’s Radio, Feb 2, 2023)
“We need all artists speaking with the fullness of their voice... . This is one of the ways we might be able to find our way back to one another.” (Rhode Island Monthly, Sep 19, 2022)
Community announcements
Mar 10, 2024
Notice of Student Death
Dear RISD Community,
It is my sad duty to share with you that our student Everett Moore 25 AP passed away off campus today. This is a tragic loss for Everett’s family, friends, peers, and our entire community. We all mourn the loss of such promise.
At this time, plans for celebrating Everett’s life have not been confirmed. We will share information as it becomes available.
As we all process this tragic loss, please support each other and keep Everett and Everett's loved ones in your thoughts.
Below are support resources that are available to our community.
Sincerely,
Crystal Williams she/her
President
President's Office
Support resources
For students: Student Affairs and Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) staff are here to support you. CAPS is available for any student wanting to access mental health support throughout the day, after hours, or on the weekend. Students can be connected with a counselor by calling 401 454-6637 to connect with CAPS during business hours (counseling@risd.edu) or ProtoCall after hours, which offers 24/7 therapeutic support.
For faculty or staff needing personal support: Please contact Coastline EAP, our Employee Assistance provider, for confidential counseling and referral/resource services 24 hours a day at 800 445-1195.
If you are immediately concerned about a RISD community member’s well-being, contact RISD Public Safety at 401 454-6666. To alert RISD professionals (including CAPS and Student Life) of a non-urgent concern, please submit a Concern Assessment Response Evaluation (CARE) referral.
Mar 05, 2024
Winter board meeting & 2024–25 tuition, fee, room and board rates
Dear RISD Students,
Last month, the Board of Trustees met for its winter meeting. Continuing with the new, two-day format, the board participated in several opportunities to engage with and hear from RISD students, faculty, staff and alums. Trustees heard a presentation from student health and wellness ambassadors, had lunch with students participating in the Studio for Research in Sound and Technology, and attended a studio walk through via Zoom with an alum who shared about navigating life as a working artist. There was also an informative presentation about the Architecture and Design division and updates from Cabinet members on institutional priorities including fundraising.
During the board’s winter meeting, financial matters constitute the primary focus of college business on the agenda, including the approval of tuition, fee, room and board rates for the next academic year. As always, we strive to keep RISD’s cost of attendance as low as feasible while simultaneously offering our students the strongest education experience possible. For the 2024–25 academic year, the board approved an increase for tuition, room and board and student fees of 4.9% (see rates below). This rate increase is necessary to meet the rising cost of goods and services and to continue to provide an excellent student experience. At the same time, we remain committed to equity. Therefore, we will also increase the financial aid budget by 11% next year. This allows us to
- continue to increase the number of students on financial aid and
- ensure current students on financial aid are not impacted by increasing their aid awards 4.9%, covering the additional tuition expense.
RISD remains in an enviable position in higher education. We continue to attract strong and large pools of prospective students, have an exceptionally low admissions rate, impact and transform the lives of emerging artists and designers and, as a result, are world renowned.
That said and as Senior Vice President of Finance and Administration David Rosati has shared recently, RISD faces a challenging fiscal situation due to a complex series of historic and contemporary contingencies. From COVID expenses geared toward preserving the most important part of RISD—its people—to adjustments in employee vacancy rates, we are now living through the consequences of these decisions. We remain confident that together—as one RISD—we can and will address these complexities.
Regarding our current fiscal realities: Our work over the past several months to achieve a balanced budget by the end of next fiscal year (June 30, 2025) continues. We began with a projected FY25 operating deficit of $4.9 million (approximately 3% of our overall annual operating budget) and, through collective efforts across our community, including cutting budgets, returning unfilled positions or by vastly diminishing hospitality expenses, we have reduced this deficit to less than $1 million. In doing so, we have continued to uphold the integrity of RISD’s mission and its delivery—and the people who make RISD such an extraordinary educational institution. But there is more work to do. By implementing additional fiscal discipline measures and together with savings, achieving additional revenues generated by small and intentional increases in undergraduate student enrollment over the next few years, expansion of our Continuing Education programs, and increased fundraising, we are assured that our plan to realize RISD’s fiscal sustainability will be achieved.
I remain steadfast in my commitment to RISD’s excellence and to the wellbeing of all who support and deliver it. I am certain that increased conversations and thoughtful problem solving will move us forward effectively, while we keep our purpose as our guiding light—to educate students in the creation and appreciation of works of art and design and to do so with passion and courage.
Sincerely,
Crystal Williams (she/her)
President
Rhode Island School of Design Tuition and Fee Schedule
2024–2025 Academic Year
Effective Summer 2024
Full-time comprehensive tuition, fall, wintersession and spring semesters: $61,564
Room and board, fall, wintersession and spring: $16,626
Student activities fee, full-time: $284
Academic and technology fee: $840
Total cost of attendance: $79,314
Feb 12, 2024
Campus update: Financial update & outlook
Dear RISD Community,
I am writing to share an update on our continued work to address this year’s budget deficit and achieve financial sustainability in the near future.
As you may recall from my late August email to campus and our November town hall meeting, we will have a budget deficit this year. We initially forecasted the deficit to be $1.6 million but, thanks to the collective effort of many community members, we have reduced this number to $1.2 million.
We are confronting significant fiscal challenges. While addressing them will not be easy and will require tough decisions, I am confident that we can do it while continuing to provide our students with an exceptional experience. RISD’s place in the world is strong and we know we will uphold excellence for the years ahead.
Our intention is to balance the budget by the end of our next fiscal year on June 30, 2025. Our key next step, which is underway, is to create a multi-year budget model that will rely on robust reporting and data.
Additionally, we are eager for the recommendations of the Financial Optimization Committee and the Budget Priorities Committee to inform the work we will do. The members of these committees, who are listed below, will provide essential input to help move us toward financial sustainability. I thank these community members for their participation in this critical work.
At the end of the month, we will meet with the Board of Trustees. I will be back in touch in March to share the outcomes of those conversations and an update on our work to create a balanced budget by the end of next year.
Sincerely,
David Rosati (he/him)
Senior Vice President, Finance & Administration
Financial Optimization Committee
Alejandro Borsani – associate professor, Experimental and Foundation Studies
Jennifer Bose – deputy director, Museum Finance and Operations
David Carreon Bradley – vice president, Social Equity and Inclusion
John Caserta – dean, Architecture and Design
Sarah Cunningham – vice provost, Strategic Partnerships
Bob DiMuccio – Board of Trustees
Susan Doyle – professor, Illustration
Fabian Fondriest – Board of Trustees
Richard Gann – senior critic, Illustration
Touba Ghadessi – provost
Brooks Hagan – dean, Fine Arts
Brandon Ice – director of operations, Student Affairs
Bethany Jankunis – vice president, Strategy and Planning & senior advisor to the president
Leora Maltz-Leca – professor, Theory and History of Art and Design
Jorge Mejia – director, Auxiliary Business Affairs and Budget
Rick Mickool – chief information officer
David Rosati – senior vice president, Finance and Administration
Jack Silva - vice president, Campus Services
Nicholas Ventola - technical assistant III, Experimental and Foundation Studies
JOFF - associate professor, Apparel Design
Budget Priorities Committee*
John Caserta – dean, Architecture & Design
Janine Connelly – director, Academic Budgets, Planning, and Analysis/Strategy
James Dean – senior academic technologist, Architecture
Ginnie Dunleavy – executive director, Auxiliary Services
Touba Ghadessi – provost
JM Greenberg – finance manager, RISD Museum
Josh Jones – director, Residence Life
Anais Missakian – professor, Textiles
David Rosati – senior vice president, Finance and Administration
Hannah Tardif – assistant vice president, Financial Strategy and Planning
Jerlyn Vidal – director, Business Affairs & Budget
*one more faculty member to be added
Get to know RISD
Learn what drives all we do—as an institution and an engaged creative community.
See how our current creative practices respond to the critical social, political and environmental challenges we face today.
Look back at how RISD’s commitment to art and design education has evolved since our 1877 founding.