Plan Ahead and Give Back

Bree Westphal 11 IL Names RISD Beneficiary of Retirement-Account Gifts to Support Future Students

It was a nudge from her employer that gave Bree Westphal 11 IL the perfect opportunity to give back to RISD. Although the illustrator and UX designer had always thought she’d “need to be wealthy in order to make a meaningful gift” to her alma mater, she was pleasantly surprised to learn that by naming the college as the beneficiary of her retirement accounts, she doesn’t “need to have a whole lot now to give a lot later.”

Now based in Belmont, Massachusetts, Westphal says that naming RISD as her beneficiary made total sense. “When I got to RISD, I had nothing more than my drawing hand,” she says, “but by the time I graduated, I had vision, inspiring friends and the means to build a creative life.”

After initially working in the gaming industry, Westphal now helps children learn at Curriculum Associates. “I am a designer and illustrator for reading comprehension software that helps to improve children’s literacy across the U.S.,” she says. “I am driven by the possibility that I might help lift a kid out of a dead-end situation through education—the way I was lifted out of mine.”

Given the scholarship support she received at RISD Westphal says, “I was able to graduate with a considerable—but manageable—amount of debt that I could pay off on time, even as I took positions with lower pay overseas.”

As for the gesture she recently made in return, Westphal says, “I am excited that I will help RISD students in the future.” And she is now one of the youngest members of the Metcalf Society, which recognizes those who have included RISD in their estate plans.