Ron Schiller is a veteran fundraising executive specializing in philanthropy and institutional advancement for universities and non-profits. He earned a bachelor's degree from Cornell University and began his career there during the university's $1.25 billion capital campaign in the late 1980s. Schiller held progressive leadership roles at several prominent institutions, including Director of Institutional Advancement at the Eastman School of Music, Vice President for Institutional Advancement at the New England Conservatory of Music, Vice President for Development at Northeastern University, Associate Vice President of Advancement and Campaign Director at Carnegie Mellon University, and Vice President for Alumni Relations and Development at the University of Chicago. In 2010, he served as President of the NPR Foundation and Senior Vice President for Development at NPR, overseeing fundraising efforts. He resigned abruptly on November 21, 2010, following the release of an undercover video by Project Veritas, in which he was recorded during a lunch meeting with individuals posing as potential donors from a fake Islamic organization. In the video, Schiller disparaged the Tea Party as 'seriously racist, white supremacist guys,' described conservatives as 'Africans who are basically n*s,' and expressed liberal political views, leading to widespread controversy, calls for his firing, and his immediate departure from NPR. NPR CEO Vivian Schiller (no relation) also resigned shortly after amid the fallout. Following his tenure at NPR, Schiller served as Senior Vice President of Lois L. Lindauer Searches before founding the Aspen Leadership Group, an executive search firm focused on placing leaders in philanthropy and higher education. He has been a faculty member for CASE (Council for Advancement and Support of Education) and remains active in the sector.