Initiatives to sustain a diverse student body

December 4, 2024

Brown is launching a set of admission recruitment initiatives focused on ensuring that diverse students from all backgrounds, their families and those who support them are excited to choose Brown for their academic journey.

In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court decision that greatly limited any consideration of race in admission decisions, Brown remains committed to complying with the law while fostering a diverse and inclusive community as integral to our mission of academic excellence. With a focus on recruitment, matriculation and retention of a diverse community of students, the University has developed a set of concrete actions focused on ensuring a robust pool of highly qualified diverse students apply to Brown and, once admitted, have access to the resources they need to enroll. 

Immediate strategies include:

  • enhancing funding for matching financial aid awards to all students admitted to Brown from institutions making competitive offers 

  • increasing participation in Brown’s matching program with QuestBridge, a national nonprofit that works to equalize access to top colleges and universities for talented high school students from low-income families

  • creating five new regionally based admissions positions focused on local recruiting across the country working with high schools and community-based organizations (CBOs)

  • creating new targeted communications campaigns for prospective students, their families and high school counselors as part of efforts to build education around accessibility, campus support and resources for career exploration

  • offering new admissions programming for guidance counselors, including those who work at CBOs, to build understanding of Brown’s commitment to a diverse and thriving student body, as well as our individualized admissions process that considers the experiences and context of every applicant

  • activating the Brown alumni network to support recruitment and matriculation efforts, building a pool of 750+ alumni for this effort

  • creating a new alumni relations position to work with alumni volunteers to greatly increase capacity to engage with prospective students from underrepresented communities

  • expanding partnerships with alumni affinity groups that cultivate relationships and support recruitment efforts among diverse communities

  • expanding our travel grant program for prospective and admitted low-income students to enable travel to campus

These efforts are being propelled by strong coordination across the Office of College Admission, Alumni Relations, Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity, Office of General Counsel, Office of University Communications and other partner offices. In addition, the Division of Advancement will play a key role in raising philanthropic funds to support all of these initiatives. 

As we build support from generous donors, we aim to sustain the pipeline of applicants to Brown from historically underrepresented student populations; increase awareness of Brown’s holistic, individualized, mission-driven admissions process among students, families and guidance counselors; and increase Brown’s yield of admitted students from a diverse range of backgrounds. This will be a years-long effort as the University and other institutions continue to contend with an evolving admissions environment nationwide.

Year over year, we will evaluate our efforts to determine how the entire admission pipeline — including recruitment, selection and yield — results in the enrollment of students who can make the strongest contribution to Brown's academic mission by fostering an environment of diversity and inclusion. We are committed to ensuring that prospective students and their families, as well as those who support them, feel confident in Brown’s commitment to providing a diverse and inclusive environment that is welcoming to students from all backgrounds.

Sincerely,

Francis J. Doyle III, Provost

Patricia Poitevien, Interim Vice President for Institutional Equity and Diversity