Home Nonprofit & Education Education URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement appoints Antonucci as new CEO

URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement appoints Antonucci as new CEO

By

James Bessette

-

03/25/2025

Antonucci — MARK ANTONUCCI has been appointed as the University of Rhode Island Foundation & Alumni Engagement's new CEO and vice president for advancement. / COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND

SOUTH KINGSTOWN – The fundraising arm for the University of Rhode Island has formally appointed its new top executive. The University of Rhode Island Foundation & Alumni Engagement announced Tuesday that Mark Antonucci, who has worked for various foundations supporting higher education institutions across the country over the years, will be its new CEO and

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SOUTH KINGSTOWN – The fundraising arm for the University of Rhode Island has formally appointed its new top executive. The University of Rhode Island Foundation & Alumni Engagement announced Tuesday that Mark Antonucci, who has worked for various foundations supporting higher education institutions across the country over the years, will be its new CEO and vice president for advancement. Antonucci formally succeeds Lil Breul O’Rourke, who retired at the end of 2024 after leading the foundation for eight years. Antonucci also arrives about nine months after the foundation named Raymond M. Williams, a senior counsel for global law firm DLA Piper US that has a Boston office, as its chairperson. URI representatives did not immediately respond Tuesday as to why the university changed the top executive's title from president to CEO. URI says Antonucci, a Rhode Island native, previously served as senior vice president for advancement and strategy at the Rutgers University Foundation. There, Antonucci, URI said, oversaw increases in annual fundraising and strategically aligned Rutgers’ multi-billion-dollar campaign with the university’s values. Now, Antonucci in his new role will work to advance URI’s mission by leading all the foundation’s aspects, the university said. That includes managing URI’s endowment, generating philanthropic support and providing engagement opportunities for more than 140,000 alumni. Additionally, Antonucci will be a member of URI President Marc B. Parlange’s senior leadership team, URI says, and collaborate with the provost, deans and senior administrators to advance URI’s strategic priorities. “Now an R1 research institution and the number one public university in New England, URI is delivering on its mission to serve its students, the state, and the broader community,” Parlange said in a statement. “We have momentum, and our success is deeply rooted in the strength of our alumni, friends, and supporters. We have so much more ahead of us – and we’re confident that Mark [Antonucci] will help lead the way.” James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on X at @James_Bessette.