Amid the early weeks of the federal government transition, we know that executive orders and policy statements from federal agencies continue to raise questions for members of our community. Over the course of coming weeks, Brown senior administrators are continuing to participate in listening sessions and town halls to give campus community members opportunities to ask questions related to recent federal government actions and Brown's response.

All Brown staff, including regular, term and seasonal positions, as well as postdocs, are invited to a virtual town hall on Wednesday, February 26, from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. This follows an all-faculty town hall co-hosted by the Office of the Provost and the Faculty Executive Committee on Feb. 13.

On Thursday, Feb. 27, chairs of the DIAP committees of Brown academic and administrative departments have been invited to an in-person session co-hosted by the Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity and the Office of the Provost. Invitees received details via email, as this is for DIAP committee chairs only.

In addition, some of Brown's schools are hosting town halls for their respective communities this spring to speak about issues specific to their schools, while administrators are offering to engage students related to their questions on federal actions during general meetings of the Undergraduate Council of Students, Graduate Student Council and Medical Student Senate. Discussions are ongoing with the student leaders of those organizations to arrange scheduling.

We remain vigilant in reviewing all new federal guidance and announcements, including recent Executive Orders and the U.S. Department of Education's Feb. 14 Dear Colleague letter on the prohibitions against discrimination based on race, color, and national origin applicable to schools and other entities receiving federal financial assistance. In addition to ongoing questions about research funding, immigration, and residency status for international members of our community, we understand that many members of our community hope to learn about any implications of this latest federal announcement for Brown.

In an environment of such pervasive uncertainty, we will not be able to offer definitive responses on many emerging questions, but we want to assure our community that the University continues to comply with applicable law and policy while remaining committed to efforts to foster a strong academic community through initiatives that aim to help all faculty, students and staff thrive, feel welcome, and participate fully in the life of the University. We continue to remind departments and offices to avoid taking independent or pre-emptive actions regarding Brown programs or websites without consulting with their academic dean or vice president overseeing their administrative area.

A University working group continues to closely assess the statements coming out of Washington, D.C., consulting with educational associations and policy experts to understand updates and/or ongoing challenges to emerging federal announcements with negative impacts for higher education. This has included Brown's support for legal challenges to safeguard federal research funding, as announced earlier this month.

Registering for Town Halls

Registration information for the Feb. 26 town hall and other town halls and listening sessions will appear in the calendar announcements or email invitations for those events, including details about the intended participants (whether the event is for staff only, students only, members of a division or school community, etc.). Please regularly consult the University's events calendar at events.brown.edu to make arrangements to attend.

To promote open dialogue in a trusted environment, all town halls are subject to the Chatham House rule: While participants are free to use the information received in the session, comments should not be attributed to any speaker. With the same goal, only designated participants may attend, reporters cannot participate, and recording is strictly prohibited.

The Feb. 26 staff town hall will provide an opportunity for staff to ask senior representatives of the administration about a broad range of concerns related to the impact of recent federal actions on Brown and higher education. 

Panelists will include President Christina H. Paxson, Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration Sarah Latham, and Senior Vice President and General Counsel Sandhya Iyer, while other administrators will also be present. This event is open only to current Brown staff.

We look forward to opportunities to reinforce Brown's commitment to our mission of education and research.

Sincerely,

Francis J. Doyle III, Provost

Sarah Latham, Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration