Vice President of Institutional Advancement

Introduction

Cleveland Institute of Art (CIA), one of the nation’s leading independent colleges of art and design, seeks a dynamic, entrepreneurial, and relationship-driven leader to serve as its next Vice President for Institutional Advancement (VPIA). Reporting directly to the President + CEO and serving as a member of the President’s Cabinet, the VPIA will serve as the College’s chief advancement officer and a key strategic partner in shaping CIA’s next chapter of institutional growth, sustainability, and impact.

The College is supported by a proactive culture that continually looks ahead, embraces innovation, and strategically plans for long‑term sustainability and growth. This is an exceptional opportunity for an experienced advancement leader who is energized not only by fundraising success, but by the opportunity to help define the future role of art and design education in a rapidly changing world.

Founded in 1882, Cleveland Institute of Art’s mission is to cultivate creative leaders who inspire people, strengthen communities and contribute to a thriving and sustainable economy through an innovative education in art and design. In addition to mission stewardship, CIA’s values of Accessibility, Creativity, Excellence, Inclusivity, Individuality, Responsibility, Stewardship, Transparency, and Wellness are thoughtfully integrated and inform the College’s policies, processes and institutional culture.

Located in Cleveland’s vibrant University Circle cultural district and through its recent expansion into Mid Town, CIA serves approximately 500 degree‑seeking students within a highly collaborative and immersive educational environment. CIA graduates are artists, designers, makers, storytellers, innovators, and entrepreneurs whose work shapes industries, communities, and culture around the world. In addition, CIA boasts a robust portfolio of community programs and classes for youth and lifelong learners.

CIA enters this search at a moment of meaningful institutional momentum and philanthropic success. The College is in the final stretch of its $35 million Transformation Campaign, with more than $32 million raised to date and several historic milestones already achieved, including doubling CIA’s endowment, securing the largest gift in the College’s history, exceeding scholarship fundraising goals, launching the Jane

B. Nord Center for Teaching + Learning, and opening the new state‑of‑the‑art Interactive Media Lab — an innovation hub at the nexus of art and design, technology, industry, and community.

At the same time, CIA is in the final year of execution of an ambitious 2020‑27 Strategic Plan focused on cultivating creative leaders, advancing the College, and strengthening the community through student success, curricular innovation, workforce alignment, and long‑term sustainability. In addition, as part of its broader business model transformation (BMT) efforts, CIA is strategically diversifying its academic model, aligning expenses with revenue, investing in areas of market growth, and modernizing institutional operations.

The College is proactively addressing many of the significant headwinds facing higher education and the creative sector, including demographic shifts, increasing skepticism regarding the value of higher education, rapid technological disruption driven by artificial intelligence, and heightened regulatory and financial pressures.

In other words, CIA is actively reimagining the role of art and design education within evolving economic, technological, and civic ecosystems. The College is investing in interdisciplinary collaboration, future‑focused curriculum development, regional innovation partnerships, and expanded pathways connecting creative practice with workforce and community impact.

This work will continue next academic year through a design‑centered planning process culminating in the adoption of a new strategic plan in 2027. The next Vice President for Institutional Advancement will play a central role in advancing that vision internally as a key stakeholder, as well as externally through philanthropy,…