We are writing to outline the search process we intend to pursue to select the 20th president of Brown, to succeed President Christina H. Paxson. Responsibility for selection of the president of the University rests with the Corporation of Brown University as the institution’s governing body. However, successful fulfillment of that responsibility requires an inclusive process incorporating active communication with, and engagement by, faculty, staff, students and alumni. The Corporation is fully committed to this principle, and the search will emulate in many respects the process that led to President Paxson’s appointment in the spring of 2012.

As was the case in that search, a Presidential Selection Committee of the Corporation, which we will co-chair, will be aided and advised by a Campus Advisory Committee to the Presidential Search. The structure of dual committees is consistent with Brown’s custom and tradition in selecting a president over the past several decades, and it will be very much a partnership with members of both committees meeting jointly and participating actively in the search. The Campus Advisory Committee comprises members of the faculty; undergraduate, graduate and medical students; and a staff representative. This committee will be led by a faculty chair and vice chair, as has been the case in past searches.

We will ask the leadership of the respective governance bodies for each constituency to nominate candidates to the Campus Advisory Committee in a timely manner. We will work with the chairs of the Faculty Executive Committee and the Medical Faculty Executive Committee to select members from those nominations in order to ensure the committee represents the breadth of the University. The membership of both the Presidential Selection Committee of the Corporation and the Campus Advisory Committee will be announced to the campus when the appointment process is complete.

In alignment with past practice, we believe that it will be beneficial to the search process for the committees to be supported by the services of an external search firm. We have retained Spencer Stuart, the national executive search firm that played a similar role in Brown’s last presidential search. The Spencer Stuart team will be co-led by Michele Haertel who, in addition to working with us on the last search, is a former Brown parent, and Ponneh Varho.

As the search gets underway this fall, an early and critical stage of the process will be actively seeking the opinions and perspectives of Brown faculty, staff, students and alumni to guide us in our work. Members of the committees and the Spencer Stuart team will be eager to hear and understand the qualities and characteristics of leadership the Brown community is seeking in our 20th president. We encourage all members of the community to take advantage of opportunities to participate, as the information gleaned will be highly instructive and essential to our ultimate success.

In identifying the best candidates to lead Brown into its next era of continued excellence and growth, we will invite nominations and applications from all quarters. We would encourage members of the community to think of and suggest individuals — inside and outside the Brown community — who you feel would be suitable candidates. Nominations can be submitted at BrownPresident@spencerstuart.com.

We will provide periodic updates to the campus as the search process unfolds; however, please know that preserving the confidentiality of candidates interested in the position, as well as the details of the search process, will be of paramount importance. As a condition of service on the committees, individual committee members will be prohibited from communicating about candidates or the status of the search in any way while the process is underway and prior to the announcement of a selected candidate.

Brown is in a fortunate position of tremendous strength, due in large part to the visionary leadership of President Paxson. Members of the Corporation look forward to working closely with representatives of the campus community to identify a president who can build upon the great accomplishments of her presidency.

Sincerely,

Brian T. Moynihan
Chancellor 

Pamela Ress Reeves
Vice Chancellor