Brown a Founding Member in New University in Exile Consortium

August 30, 2018

Members of the Brown Community,

I write to let you know that Brown University has joined the New University in Exile (UIE) Consortium as a founding member. UIE is an expanding group of 10 colleges and universities that have committed publicly to supporting scholars at risk due to war or political persecution by providing a temporary refuge for continued research, education and critical contributions to a field of study. Housed at The New School for Social Research, the founding member institutions in addition to Brown and The New School are: Barnard College, Columbia University, Connecticut College, Georgetown University, George Mason University, Rutgers University-Newark, Trinity College and Wellesley.

As a member of UIE, Brown commits to hosting displaced and endangered scholars, and to providing the essential resources to ensure they are able to thrive during their time on campus. Scholars from the various member institutions will be brought together as an academic community through UIE, engaging in workshops, seminars and other collaborative projects throughout the year.

We are enthusiastic about joining this coalition, in part because we are already engaging in this work. Since 2016, through our Displaced Scholars program formed in response to the influx of migrants into Europe from war-torn regions such as Syria and Iraq, Brown has hosted a visiting professor and three graduate students from Syria, and one visiting artist from Nigeria. We have also relaunched the International Writers Project, which is housed in Literary Arts and provides institutional, intellectual, artistic and social support to writers who face personal danger and threats to their livelihood in nations throughout the world.  In addition, last year, through the enlightened generosity of Brown parents Ann and Andrew Tisch, we established the Ann and Andrew Tisch Scholarship Fund for Refugee Students. This crucial gift supports student refugees who have had to escape their home country due to war, persecution, or other danger, natural disaster or crisis.

All of these programs are testament to Brown’s proud tradition of responding to crises, locally and globally, in ways that advance our mission to contribute to the community, the nation, and the world through teaching, research, and service. In the face of an increasingly unstable world, the need is ever more pressing to recommit to this work and to ensure that university campuses remain physically and intellectually open and welcoming. 

By joining UIE, which will launch officially on September 6, 2018, at an event at The New School, we hope to share best practices, provide an opportunity for displaced and endangered scholars to commune and collaborate, and call attention to the importance of this work. Our hope is that additional colleges and universities will host and support scholars, and join this valuable consortium.

Sincerely,

Richard M. Locke
Provost