Washington, DC—The National Gallery of Art announced today that Arlene Williams has been hired as the museum’s new director of strategic giving. She assumed the role on May 6, and will lead the cultivation of major philanthropic gifts by individual, institutional, and corporate donors at the National Gallery. The funds raised through Williams’s work will be key to the museum’s efforts to continue producing exhibitions, programs, and activities in service of the nation.

Williams has more than 25 years of experience in nonprofit fundraising and program development, implementation, operations, and management. Earlier in her career, she served as director of development for the American Alliance of Museums (AAM), where she launched the first national awards program recognizing philanthropic support to the museum community, instituted an annual session for funders and AAM leadership to discuss issues confronting the museum community, and designed an annual individual donor program to build general support for the organization. Williams also served on the first advisory board for the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Williams was most recently chief operating officer and senior vice president of special initiatives at the Policy Academies, a newly formed organization working to advance the representation of Black and Brown leaders in the field of public policy analysis and research. Previously, she has led development and fundraising efforts at the Economic Policy Institute, the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, the DC Children and Youth Investment Trust, and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, raising millions of dollars in foundational support and establishing countless corporate sponsorships for these institutions.

Williams holds a BA from George Washington University in Washington, DC.