Christina Paxson

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Christina Paxson at Brown
Brown president Christina Paxson.jpg
Paxson presided over Brown's 250th anniversary celebration in 2014
Richard Gouse and Christina Paxson.jpg
Honoring Richard I. Gouse '68, primary donor of the Richard Gouse Field at Brown Stadium, in 2021

As President of Brown University, Paxson has focused on a set of strategic goals announced in 2014; among these institutional priorities are data science, the creative arts, and brain science. [9] Under Paxson's leadership, the University has established a School of Public Health as well as numerous centers and institutes including the Brown Arts Institute, the Brown Institute for Translational Science, the Data Science Initiative, and the Nelson Center for Entrepreneurship.

For three consecutive years under her leadership, Brown students and graduates have earned the most Fulbright Scholarships of all U.S. Universities. [10]

She has also sustained undergraduate financial aid as the fastest growing area of Brown's budget by increasing scholarships for low-income families and eliminating loans from University-awarded financial aid packages, as part of The Brown Promise, in addition to Brown's Pathways to Diversity and Inclusion action plan. [10]

Paxson has overseen a considerable expansion of Brown's academic, performing arts, and residential facilities. Expansion of Brown's physical footprint under Paxson's leadership has been controversial, at times spurring criticism from community organizations and preservation groups. [11] [12] [13] [14]

In 2019, she told the University that she would not honor a student-sponsored referendum calling for Brown to divest from companies that engage in human rights abuses in Palestine, and said that it would not be possible to make the details of the University's investments available to the public. [15] [16] She has been a member of the Kol Emet congregation, a Jewish Reconstructionist synagogue, committed to the growth of a spiritually and intellectually engaging Judaism. [17] [18] [19]

A Fall 2021 poll conducted by The Brown Daily Herald found that 47.1% of surveyed students "strongly" or "somewhat" disapproved of Paxson's leadership while 32.8% "strongly" or "somewhat" approved. [20] The publication's Fall 2017 poll placed Paxson's approval rating at 61.9%. [21] [22]

Other Activities

In 2013, Paxson wrote a New Republic op-ed, arguing for ongoing relevance of the humanities from an economist's perspective. [23]

Paxson has also maintained numerous institutional affiliations: in addition to being a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, she was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2017. [24] [25] The previous year, she became a member of the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. After serving as its deputy chair, she became the chair of its board of directors in 2021. [26] [27] [28] In 2018, Paxson received an honorary doctorate from Williams College. [29]

In wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Paxson penned a New York Times op-ed and appeared on CNN, outlining her views on the importance of reopening colleges safely in the fall of 2020. [30] [31] On June 4, 2020, Paxson testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, during a hearing entitled "COVID-19: Going Back to College Safely." [32]

Personal life

Paxson is married to Ari Gabinet and has two children, Nicholas and Benjamin. [7] Raised a Quaker, she converted to her husband's Jewish faith. [33]

Selected publications

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References

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  2. Lewin, Tamar (March 2, 2012). "Christina Hull Paxson Chosen as President of Brown". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved January 17, 2018.
  3. "The Inauguration of Christina Hull Paxson". Brown University. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
  4. "Economist Christina Hull Paxson elected 19th president of Brown University". Brown University. March 2, 2012. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
  5. "President Christina H. Paxson | Office of the President". Brown University. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
  6. Thornton, Lucy Feldman,Sahil Luthra,Kat (March 5, 2012). "'People person' leaves mark on Princeton". Brown Daily Herald. Retrieved January 23, 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. 1 2 3 "Who is Christina Paxson?". Brown Alumni Magazine. November 27, 2012. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  8. "NBER Bulletin on Aging and Health". www.nber.org. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
  9. "Brain science at forefront of Brown scholarship priorities". The Brown Daily Herald. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
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  11. Gagosz, Alexa (June 1, 2021). "On Providence's East Side, a battle brews between Brown University and longtime residents - The Boston Globe". Boston Globe . Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  12. Journal, William Morgan Special to The. "Brown's ERC is a cutting-edge facility". The Providence Journal. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  13. "Demolition remains ongoing on Brook Street dorm site". The Brown Daily Herald. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  14. "$31.6 million gift will help fund performing arts center, strategic priorities for Brown". Brown University. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  15. "Letter from President Paxson: Responding to divestment referendum vote". Brown University. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  16. Bandler, Aaron (March 22, 2019). "Brown University President Rejects Anti-Israel Student Vote". Jewish Journal. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  17. "Congregation Kol Emet" . Retrieved March 2, 2019.
  18. "Masks" (PDF). www.kolemet.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 2, 2013. Retrieved November 26, 2013.
  19. "Promises" (PDF). www.kolemet.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 3, 2013. Retrieved November 26, 2013.
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  21. "Herald Fall 2017 Poll Results and Methodology". The Brown Daily Herald. Retrieved March 24, 2022.
  22. "Spring 2019 Herald poll results". The Brown Daily Herald. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
  23. "The Economic Case for Saving the Humanities". New Republic. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
  24. "Brown's president named to American Academy of Arts and Sciences". Brown University. April 11, 2017. Retrieved May 14, 2017.
  25. "Membership Roster". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
  26. Boston, Federal Reserve Bank of (January 2017). "Christina Hull Paxson - Federal Reserve Bank of Boston". Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
  27. Goldberg, Daniel (January 22, 2019). "Paxson named deputy chair of Boston Fed". Brown Daily Herald. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  28. Boston, Federal Reserve Bank of (January 1, 2017). "Christina Hull Paxson". Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  29. "Williams College awards honorary degree to President Paxson" . Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  30. Paxson, Christina (April 26, 2020). "Opinion | College Campuses Must Reopen in the Fall. Here's How We Do It". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved June 10, 2020.
  31. Meg Wagner; Mike Hayes; Elise Hammond; Veronica Rocha (April 28, 2020). "Schools might not recover if they don't reopen in the fall, university president says". CNN. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
  32. "Paxson tells U.S. Senate stakes are high as universities seek to safely reopen". Brown University. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
  33. "Why I Am a Jew". Brown Alumni Magazine. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
Christina Paxson
Christina paxson.jpg
19th President of Brown University
Assumed office
July 1, 2012
Academic offices
Preceded by19th President of Brown University
July 1, 2012–present
Incumbent
Preceded by Dean
Woodrow Wilson School
Princeton University

2009-2012
Succeeded by