Christina Paxson is the 19th president of Brown University and Professor of Economics and Public Policy.
Since assuming the presidency in July 2012, Paxson’s key priorities have included building distinction in strategic areas of Brown’s rich research environment, such as brain science, data science, the digital humanities and engineering; expanding financial aid through initiatives like the Brown Promise, which eliminates University-packaged loans from all undergraduate financial aid packages; and cultivating entrepreneurship among teacher-scholars and students.
Under Paxson’s leadership, Brown gained national attention for an ambitious plan to advance academic excellence by shaping a fully diverse and inclusive campus. Brown released “Pathways to Diversity and Inclusion: An Action Plan for Brown University” in February 2016.
Paxson has been an outspoken advocate for academic freedom. In fall 2016, she partnered with Brown’s provost to launch “Reaffirming University Values: Campus Dialogue and Discourse,” a series of events and conversations aimed at encouraging campus-wide discourse on difficult topics, often among community members with conflicting views.
Prior to her appointment at Brown, Paxson was dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of International and Public Affairs and the Hughes Rogers Professor of Economics and Public Affairs at Princeton University.
A nationally recognized higher education leader, respected economist and public health expert, Paxson is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a board member of the Association of American Universities, and serves on the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston Board of Directors.
She is 1982 honors graduate of Swarthmore College and earned her graduate degrees in economics at Columbia University (M.A., 1985; Ph.D., 1987).