The Brown Corporation — the University’s highest governing body — formally accepted over $120 million in gifts and pledges at its fall meetings, according to a Monday morning Today@Brown announcement from President Christina Paxson P’19 P’MD’20. The gifts and pledges include commitments of $1 million or more made since the Corporation’s meeting in May.
The Corporation also approved the creation of five endowed professorships and the appointment of three faculty members to named chairs.
The Corporation’s Ad Hoc Committee on Diversity and Inclusion also shared an update on its progress toward developing a “recommended framework to sustain the diverse and inclusive community necessary for the successful fulfillment of Brown’s academic mission,” according to the announcement. Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion Matthew Guterl is leading the effort, and the plan is set to be released in May 2027.
In 2016, the University released and pledged $165 million over 10 years to “Pathways to Diversity and Inclusion: An Action Plan for Brown University.” In the five years following the creation of the plan, DIAP facilitated the hiring of 42 new faculty members from historically underrepresented groups and doubled the number of graduate students from these groups. DIAP also supported scholarship in race, ethnicity and immigration.
The Ad Hoc Committee was created in 2025 to continue the work of the DIAP and “ensure that our University continues to be a campus where all faculty, staff and students enjoy the benefits of opportunity, belonging and access,” according to a message announcing the committee’s creation.
Members of the Corporation were also invited to discuss the University’s sexual violence prevention and response initiative and the Discovery Through Dialogue project with the Committee on Campus Life.
“Given ongoing national conversations, it was important for all Corporation members to have an opportunity to learn about the history and current state of Brown’s work on sexual violence prevention and response,” Paxson wrote.
At the October meetings, Provost Francis Doyle III reiterated last month’s statement announcing that the University is conducting searches for candidates to fill two roles: Director of the Simmons Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice and the Aga Khan Professor of Islamic Humanities.
The Corporation’s Committee on Academic Affairs received updates about large research grants awarded to Brown-led research efforts, including an $11.1 million National Institutes of Health grant renewal for the Center for Stress, Trauma and Resilience, a $37 million investment from the Starr Foundation for aging research and clinical care and a $26 million NIH grant renewal for Advance RI-CTR, a Brown-based that supports scientific research in Rhode Island.
The Corporation also heard updates on a number of ongoing projects, including the University’s Safety and Security Action Plan, the proposed Department of Economics building, the Danoff Life Sciences Laboratories and the Lassonde Innovation and Design Hub.
Eight new trustees were also welcomed to the Corporation: Suzi Kwon Cohen ’92, Oliver Haarmann ’90, Adam Korn ’97, Frayda Lindemann, Alina Moran ’93, Anne Pedrero ’91, Logan Tullai ’25 and Kehli Harding Woodruff ’94.
Jeremiah Farr is a senior staff writer covering university hall and higher education.
