Date September 6, 2022
Media Contact

Brown welcomes talented group of 62 new faculty members

Representing a wide variety of disciplines and backgrounds, the scholars join the Brown community this year to guide student-centered learning and engage in high-impact research.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — As the 2022-23 academic year begins at Brown and more than 3,203 new undergraduate, graduate and medical students arrive on College Hill, the University also welcomes a group of 62 dynamic new scholars and educators to the Brown faculty.

With research and teaching expertise on topics ranging from global health security to climate change, brain science to diaspora studies, and architecture to algorithms, Brown’s newest faculty members represent a wide range of fields, backgrounds and viewpoints. Welcoming faculty with such diversity of experience comes at a time when Brown is developing an operational plan for significantly growing its research enterprise.

“Our faculty are accomplished researchers, creative artists and educators whose work expands knowledge at the leading edge of their disciplines and, in partnership with Brown students and staff, makes a positive impact in communities both locally and across the globe,” said Provost Richard M. Locke. “I’m delighted to welcome this cohort of talented scholars to Brown to build on and amplify efforts across campus to develop solutions to many of the most vexing questions faced by society today.”

The arrival of 62 new faculty members reflects Brown's strategic efforts to recruit top scholars from research areas — articulated in the Building on Distinction strategic plan and related operational plans — in which the University is uniquely poised to have a meaningful impact. And with nearly 30% of this year’s new faculty members coming from groups historically underrepresented in higher education, strategic investments in actions outlined in Brown's Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan are helping to ensure that faculty represent the varied backgrounds, perspectives and experiences critical to advancing knowledge, learning and discovery.

In addition, multiple new deans (including those with interim appointments) will lead schools and academic units in their first full academic years in 2022-23: Ronald Aubert, interim dean of the School of Public Health; Tejal Desai, dean of the School of Engineering; Dr. Mukesh K. Jain, dean of the Warren Alpert Medical School; Thomas Lewis, interim dean of the Graduate School; Shankar Prasad, dean of the School of Professional Studies; and Leah VanWey, dean of the faculty.

Desai, who began her tenure at Brown on Sept. 1, will deliver the keynote address at this year’s Opening Convocation ceremony on Saturday, Sept. 10.

The new professors, associate professors, assistant professors and lecturers will serve across the University’s academic departments, divisions and schools. The full listing of new faculty, with links for more information about each of them, follows below.

Humanities and Social Sciences

Portrait of Leslie Acton

Leslie Acton
Lecturer in Environment and Society

Portrait of Christelle Alvarez

Christelle Alvarez
Assistant Professor of Egyptology and Assyriology

Portrait of Rick Baldoz

Rick Baldoz
Associate Professor of American Studies

Portrait of Sandra Barnes

Sandra Barnes
C.V. Starr Professor of Sociology

Portrait of Keisha Blain

Keisha Blain
Professor of Africana Studies

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Jayna Brown
Professor of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies

Portrait of Donghyun Danny Choi

Donghyun Danny Choi
Assistant Professor of Political Science

Portrait of Becci Davis

Becci Davis
Lecturer in Visual Art

Portrait of John Diamond

John Diamond
Professor of Sociology and Education Policy

Portrait of Gemma Dipoppa

Gemma Dipoppa
Assistant Professor of Political Science

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John Eason
Watson Family University Associate Professor of Sociology and International and Public Affairs

Portrait of Kim Gallon

Kim Gallon
Associate Professor of Africana Studies

Portrait of Macerena Gomez-Barris

Macarena Gomez-Barris
Professor of Modern Culture and Media
 

Portrait of Chris Grasso

Chris Grasso
Professor of History

Portrait of Heeyeong Jung

Heeyeong Jung
Lecturer in East Asian Studies

Portrait of Tricia Kelly

Tricia Kelly
Lecturer in Education

Portrait of Kent Kleinman

Kent Kleinman
Faculty Director of the Brown Arts Institute, Professor of the Practice of History of Art and Architecture

Portrait of Nell Lake

Nell Lake 
Lecturer in English

Portrait of Shelley Lee

Shelley Lee 
Professor of American Studies

Portrait of Enongo Lumumba-Kasongo

Enongo Lumumba-Kasongo
David S. Josephson Assistant Professor of Music

Portrait of Elisa Macchi

Elisa Macchi
Assistant Professor of Economics

Portrait of Kyuwon Moon

Kyuwon Moon
Lecturer in East Asian Studies

Portrait of Mark Ocegueda

Mark Ocegueda
Assistant Professor of History

Portrait of Mindi Schneider

Mindi Schneider
Lecturer in Environment and Society

Portrait of Matthew Shenoda

Matthew Shenoda
Professor of Literary Arts

Portrait of Grace Talusan

Grace Talusan
Lecturer in English

Portrait of Ivan Tan

Ivan Tan
Lecturer in Music

Portrait of Timo Vollbrecht

Timo Vollbrecht
Lecturer in Music

Portrait of Alexander Weheliye

Alexander Weheliye
Malcolm S. Forbes Professor of Modern Culture and Media

Portrait of Karin Wulf

Karin Wulf
Beatrice and Julio Mario Santo Domingo Director and Librarian of the John Carter Brown Library, Professor of History

Life and Physical Sciences

Portrait of Nora Ayanian

Nora Ayanian
Associate Professor of Computer Science and Engineering

Portrait of Yusong Bai

Yusong Bai
Assistant Professor of Chemistry

Portrait of Gerrit Budde

Gerrit Budde
Assistant Professor of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences

Portrait of Yu Cheng

Yu Cheng
Assistant Professor of Computer Science

Portrait of Kim Cobb

Kim Cobb
Professor of Environment and Society and Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences, Director of the Institute at Brown for Environment and Society

Portrait of Nicholas DeMarinis

Nicholas DeMarinis
Lecturer in Computer Science

Portrait of Emanuele di Lorenzo

Emanuele di Lorenzo
Professor of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Science

Portrait of Javier Gomez-Serrano

Javier Gomez Serrano
Associate Professor of Mathematics

Portrait of Brendan Keith

Brendan Keith
Assistant Professor of Applied Mathematics

Portrait of Megan Kizer

Megan Kizer
Assistant Professor of Chemistry

Portrait of Matthias Kuehne

Matthias Kuehne
Assistant Professor of Physics

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Harriet Lau
Assistant Professor of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences

Portrait of Peihan Miao

Peihan Miao
Assistant Professor of Computer Science

Portrait of Jeese Morin

Jesse Morin
Lecturer in Chemistry

Portrait of Shekhar Pradhan

Shekhar Pradhan
Lecturer in Data Science

Portrait of Emily Sprague-Klein

Emily Sprague-Klein
Assistant Professor of Chemistry

Portrait of Peyam Tabrizian

Peyam Tabrizian
Lecturer in Applied Mathematics

Portrait of Nikos Vasilakis

Nikos Vasilakis
Assistant Professor of Computer Science

Portrait of Suresh Venkatasubramanian

Suresh Venkatasubramanian Professor of Data Science and Computer Science

Biology and Medicine

Portrait of William Holmes

William Holmes
Lecturer in Biology Education

Portrait of Sean Lawler

Sean Lawler
Associate Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

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Sofia Lizarraga
Assistant Professor of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry

Portrait of Kristina Monteiro

Kristina  Monteiro
Lecturer in Biology Education

Portrait of Yang Zhou

Yang Zhou
Assistant Professor of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology

Engineering

Ansari_Hamzah

Hamzah Ansari 
Lecturer in Engineering

Portrait of Miguel Bessa

Miguel Bessa
Associate Professor of Engineering

Portrait of Lucas Caretta

Lucas Caretta
Assistant Professor of Engineering

Portrait of William Curtin

William Curtin
Professor of Engineering

Public Health

Portrait of Rachel Baker

Rachel Baker
Assistant Professor of Epidemiology

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Michael Silverstein
George Hazard Crooker University Professor of Health Services, Policy and Practice

Portrait of Jennifer Nuzzo

Jennifer Nuzzo
Professor of Epidemiology

Portrait of Alison Tovar

Alison Tovar
Associate Professor of Behavioral and Social Sciences