Rhode Island School of Design, Vice President for Institutional Advancement

Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) named Amanda Clark MacMullan Vice President for Institutional Advancement. Clark MacMullan joins RISD from the Massachusetts Historical Society (MHS), where she served as senior vice president of programs & external affairs.

In her new role at RISD, Clark MacMullan will partner closely with RISD President Crystal Williams to lead the advancement program. She will cultivate principal and major gift donors to maximize philanthropic resources for the school, partnering with trustees, alumni, faculty, staff, students, and the broader community.

Clark MacMullan has over 25 years of experience in higher education, arts, and culture. Prior to MHS, Clark MacMullan served as chief philanthropy officer for the Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) from 2014 to 2023. In this role, she helped to complete a $650 million campaign, grew the museum’s endowment, and secured some of the largest gifts in the institution’s history. Before her tenure at the PEM, Clark MacMullan led philanthropic efforts and strategic partnerships at institutions of varying size and complexity, including New Profit, Boston University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard Law School.

Clark MacMullan holds a bachelor of arts in history from Bowdoin College and a master of arts from Columbia University in East Asian Languages and Cultures. 

Jack Gorman led this search with Elizabeth Neustaedter, Emily Godamanna, and Ryan Cheung.