Clark University has appointed Robert Riddles as Director of the office of Corporate & Foundation Relations.

Riddles took the post in May, bringing to Clark a decade of fundraising experience in higher education, most recently at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He has secured grants totaling more than $10 million from both private and federal sources, including the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Teagle Foundation, the National Science Foundation, and non-competitive appropriations from elected officials.

“I was absolutely drawn to President [David] Angel’s vision of a liberal education for the 21st Century,” Riddles said, referring to Clark University’s pioneering model of Liberal Education and Effective Practice, known as LEEP. “The LEEP initiatives bring extraordinary value to current and prospective students, their families, and the general public. So too, I was thrilled to be able to work under the mentorship of [Vice President of Advancement] Andy McGadney to help define and communicate that message to institutional donors.

“As a first-generation college graduate myself, I am intimately familiar with the challenges and rewards of a liberal education, what it has done for me, and the transformative effect it can have on others.”

Riddles is a graduate of the University of Denver. A southern California native, he is also an instrument-rated, private pilot and enjoys teaching his son how to surf.