Founders Day

students work at drawing tables in a black-and-off white photo

RISD, always something of a maverick, was founded and nurtured by a small group of women more than 40 years before women in America gained the right to vote.

RISD was founded on March 22, 1877

In 1877, the Rhode Island Women’s Centennial Commission, led by Helen Adelia Rowe Metcalf, had a surplus of $1,675. They decided to use the funds to found an independent school of art and design (instead of building a public fountain—one of the other options on the table), a bold and somewhat controversial choice at the time. Despite the fact that only a few such schools existed in the US at that time and many people publicly doubted that the endeavor could be successful, Metcalf and her peers forged ahead. Nearly 150 years later, Rhode Island School of Design is still a place for innovation and experimentation.

Students trained in arts and design since 1877

114,000+

Pre-College Program alumni since 1971

10,500+

Visitors to RISD Museum 2023-2024

130,584

2025 On-Campus Events

In honor of its entrepreneurial founders and rich legacy, RISD celebrates Founders Day in March with a series of events and service activities that reflect and carry forward the institution’s mission.

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9 am–9 pm

Led by E’Ship and IDSA, the annual Founders Sandbox is designed to enhance connections between students and alumni while promoting a culture of innovation and problem-solving. Programming includes keynotes from alumni founders, a makeathon where participants will create prototypes and build business models, and round table talks that focus on experience creation, cultural entrepreneurship and curation, social enterprise, and design consultancy. Events will be held throughout the day in ProvWash and the RISD Museum.

This event is sponsored by Institutional Advancement, E'Ship and IDSA.

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This year’s Founders Day student project represents the spirit of our RISD community and the threads that connect us, tracing back into our past and forward into the future. Throughout the week as we unroll our scroll, students will take up where the previous student left off, creating an ongoing line drawing connected to, and growing from, the previous creator but unique to each.

Together, we will create something new, something different and something that will continue into the future.

WHERE: The Met

TUESDAY, MARCH 18
11:30 am–1:30 pm

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 19
5:30 pm–7:30 pm

THURSDAY, MARCH 20
11:30 am–1:30 pm

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11 am–2 pm

Meet RISD Staff in The Met for a Founders Day treat.

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The RISD Store is offering a discount of 18.77% on Founders Day, Saturday, March 22, 2025.

Online purchases of RISD-branded merchandise and alumni collection items may be discounted with code FOUND1877.

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The RISD Museum is offering free admission to all guests in honor of Founders Day.

Alumni Days of Service events

In honor of Founders Day, many of our regional clubs participate in activities supporting their communities. Take a look at what events are happening this year, and get involved where you can!

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Every year, Project Cicero collects new and gently used books for children and young adults. At our annual service day with the organization, the Club of New York City helps Project Cicero sort, organize, display and distribute gently-used children's books to teachers from under-resourced public schools in the city. With our help Project Cicero will process over 150,000 books this year!

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Celebrate RISD’s Founders Day with the Club of Chicago as we spend the afternoon volunteering at Nourishing Hope Food Pantry. Together we will help unload, inventory, and sort through donations of food arriving at their warehouse, “The Hub.”

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Volunteer with the Club of Rhode Island and help animals in need at the Hotel for Homeless Dogs, part of the New England Humane Society (NEHS). Join our alumni community for a good cause with tasks that involve dog walking, cleaning, and helping around the hotel.

Spaces are limited; please register by Monday, March 17.

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In recognition of the devastation faced by many in our LA community, the Club of Los Angeles invites you to for an evening of card making for Los Angeles County firefighters and emergency responders.

We will gather at Peace Awareness Labyrinth & Gardens for some light bites and card writing with a brief guided meditation for writing heartfelt letters. The club is providing blank cards and some drawing/writing utensils, but please feel free to bring materials you would like to use.

Please register in advance

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Join the Club of South Florida at the Baynanza Biscayne Bay Cleanup Day at Haulover Park.

Biscayne Bay is one of Greater Miami & Miami Beach’s most treasured ecosystems and faces ongoing threats from pollution and contamination. Let’s come together as a community and celebrate marine resources and ecological restoration.

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Information and registration coming soon!

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Join the Club of Philadelphia at the annual Wissahickon Creek Clean Up for a day of service event. We will be working at the historic Rittenhouse Town, the site of the first paper mill in America. Rittenhouse Town is located at the intersection of Wissahickon Ave. and Lincoln Drive.

Registration for our day of service is free. Space is limited for this event, so early sign up is encouraged. After you register, your confirmation email will contain a link to complete your sign up directly with Friends of Wissahickon Creek. You must complete their form to participate in the cleanup.