Destini Ross

Destini Ross (she/they) is the associate director of the Arts, Media & Communications Career Community. They work closely with students and campus partners to provide meaningful career advising and tailored events. Destini aims to serve as a grounding presence and empower students to chase their most ambitious aspirations, respond to change, and learn the tools they need to become strategic and confident career designers. Destini prioritizes a culture of learning (and then standing up for) your values, doing no harm, and always remembering to say “thank you.”

Destini was born in Indianapolis and knew she wanted to work in the arts from the first time she picked up a camera at 12 years old. The first in her family to attend college, she earned dual degrees: a B.F.A. in Studio Art (Photography) and a B.A. in Art History, from Indiana University. She later earned her M.A. in the History of Art from Williams College’s GradArt program (Massachusetts). Destini has held positions across education, curation, programming and sales in galleries and museums. She has also served as a studio assistant, research assistant in academic publishing, and is a freelance photographer. Destini’s art historical research investigates the systemic structures and social forces that shape artistic production and circulation, particularly through critical attention to race, gender, class, consent and power.

Destini joined Grinnell College in fall 2024 alongside her beloved partner and their two cat-children, Troi and Maggie. When she isn’t equipping students with the knowledge and skills they need to kickstart their careers, Destini can be found reading social theory, flipping rocks over in search of interesting bugs, and narrating Troi and Maggie’s rich interior lives.