William Russell has been a Member of the Jerome Foundation since 2004. He has been closely associated with the Hill family for three generations, and considered Jerome Hill (“Uncle Romie”) an informal mentor and exceptionally formative influence on his intellectual maturation and appreciation for the importance of the arts in human life. In the 1960s, Russell spent many summers at Jerome’s estate in Cassis, France—now home to the Camargo Foundation.
After Harvard College and a semester at Harvard Divinity School, in 1963 began teaching at Noble & Greenough School. He then became an assistant dean at Harvard while doing graduate work in the philosophy of education at Boston University. After completing his doctorate in 1971, Russell taught at Emerson College. He then worked in the Division of Education Programs at the National Endowment for the Humanities from 1973–79, followed by his management of Norton Company’s corporate foundation. In 1981 he became a consultant, working with the Project on Private Philanthropy and Voluntarism at the Institute for Educational Affairs in NYC, the Boston Cardiovascular Health Center, and a variety of start-up and early-stage companies. In the early 1990s, Russell went to Boston University’s School of Education to serve as the Senior Development Officer.
Since 2002, Bill has focused his consulting on nonprofits and foundations, and has served on many boards. His wife and three adult children provide the greatest of his many blessings.