External links
- Crystal Williams - Interview & Poetry - April 2010
- Rhode Island School of Design names 18th president - The Boston Globe - December 16, 2021
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Crystal Ann Williams | |
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| 18th President of the Rhode Island School of Design | |
| Assumed office 1 April 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Rosanne Somerson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1970 (age 54–55) Detroit,Michigan,U.S. [1] |
| Education | New York University Cornell University |
| Profession | Educator,poet |
| Website | www |
Crystal Ann Williams (born 1970) [1] is an American educator and poet serving as the 18th president of Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) since 2022. [2] [3] [4] She was raised in both Detroit,Michigan and Madrid,Spain. [2] She has earned degrees at New York University (BFA),and Cornell University (MFA,Creative Writing). [5] [6]
Williams has received grants and fellowships from the Oregon Arts Commission,the Money for Women also known as the Barbara Deming Memorial Fund,and the MacDowell Colony. [7]
Williams began teaching at Reed College as a professor of English,becoming dean for institutional diversity from 2011 to 2013. [2] From 2013 to 2017,Williams worked at Bates College as the associate vice president for strategic initiatives and as a professor of English. [2] In 2017,Williams came to Boston University where she first worked as the inaugural associate provost for diversity and inclusion before transferring into a broader role as vice president and associate provost for community and inclusion. [8]
In 2021,it was announced that Williams was leaving her position as vice president and associate provost for community and inclusion at Boston University to become Rhode Island School of Design's 18th president. [2] Williams became its first Black president on April 1,2022. [2]
On March 17,2025,RISD students and alumni opened an exhibition at Carr Haus,a student-run caféopen to the public,in support of Palestine. Four days later,following an online post by StopAntisemitism and "perceived threat of harm," Williams shut down the exhibition. [9] A student with work removed from the show said it "felt like censorship." [10] The premature closure was condemned by the National Coalition Against Censorship,among other community members. [11] Williams has previously threatened students with expulsion for pro-Palestine protest actions. [12]
The previous fall,Williams was profiled in the New York Times,saying of her own creative practice:"Poetry requires a kind of heart space and solitude I don't have." [13]
Williams received $635,176 in compensation in 2024. [14]
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