Gwendolyn Freed has been named the twentieth president of the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. She is set to begin her presidency on June 1.
The Minneapolis College of Art and Design enrolls over 700 undergraduate and 100 graduate students. Women represent 69 percent of the undergraduate student body.
With over two decades of experience in higher education, the arts, and nonprofit leadership, Dr. Freed currently serves as the interim chief development officer at Second Harvest Heartland, a food bank in Brooklyn, Minnesota. She also teaches as an adjunct professor in the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. She has served as chief development officer of the Humphrey School and interim director of the University of Minnesota School of Music. Earlier in her career, Dr. Freed was vice president for institutional advancement at the Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle and vice president for marketing and communication at Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota.
Dr. Freed earned a master of music degree from The Juilliard School in New York City. She holds a master of public affairs degree in public and nonprofit leadership and management and a Ph.D. in educational policy and administration from the University of Minnesota.