Dear Members of the Brown Community,

I’m pleased to share that Dr. Patricia (Pat) Poitevien, a senior administrator and member of the faculty within the Division of Biology and Medicine, has been appointed Brown’s next vice president for campus life, effective June 1, 2025. In her role, Pat will lead the Division of Campus Life, serve as a member of the President’s Cabinet and work closely with the Corporation of Brown University on matters related to all aspects of the student experience.

Among an excellent pool of candidates in a national search, Pat stood out for her strong knowledge of developmental learning and her deep understanding of health and well-being as integral to student success. Pat is both a practicing pediatrician and an educator who has thoughtfully mentored and supported students across all stages of their academic and personal journeys. As a recognized expert in disparities in medical education and health care, she brings a demonstrated ability to cultivate understanding across differences. 

The vice president for campus life is responsible for supporting holistic student success and working in collaboration with faculty, staff and students to foster and maintain a campus community grounded in mutual respect and trust that encourages intellectual inquiry and development. In her new role, Pat will collaborate with partners across administrative units and academic departments to create opportunities for all undergraduate, graduate and medical students to thrive. She will oversee more than 20 centers, departments and offices, including the offices of Student and Residential Life; Health and Wellness; Chaplains and Religious Life; Inclusivity and Belonging; and Equity, Compliance and Reporting, which manages matters related to the University’s compliance with federal equity mandates.

While serving as Brown’s interim vice president for institutional equity and diversity from November until the end of February of this year, she demonstrated her ability to work strategically and collaboratively with colleagues across campus to ensure that all members of our community, no matter their background, could participate fully in the life of the University. During her time in that role, Pat thoughtfully and collaboratively provided leadership amid complex challenges in an evolving landscape of federal policy changes affecting both the University and individual community members. These efforts will serve as a strong foundation for her role stewarding the holistic care of our community.

Pat also has a deep and personal relationship to the Brown student experience. She earned both bachelor’s and medical degrees from Brown as a graduate of the Program in Liberal Medical Education. She has an innate understanding of the Brown ethos and a deep appreciation for the University’s focus on maintaining the resources, support and services to enable all students to succeed. Her collective experience makes her uniquely suited to listen to and understand the complexity of student needs and to be a strong advocate for students. 

More on Pat’s professional background

An associate professor of pediatrics, Pat joined the Warren Alpert Medical School faculty in 2018. Since 2022, she has provided integral leadership as senior associate dean for diversity, equity and inclusion, a role in which she has served as a valuable liaison between the medical school community, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, and Brown’s affiliated clinical partners. She has helped to advance the University’s commitment to strengthening diversity and inclusion, enabling new collaborations and supporting medical students in providing inclusive, community-centered education, mentorship and clinical care. 

Prior to joining Brown, Pat was an assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics at New York University’s school of medicine from 2006 through 2018. She is the immediate past president of the Association of Pediatric Program Directors and was a founding member of the association’s Learning Community on Underrepresented Minorities in Medicine. Until 2022, she led the Brown Pediatrics Residency Program at Hasbro Children’s Hospital, which is an affiliated hospital of the medical school.

As a graduate of the Program in Liberal Medical Education, Pat earned both a bachelor’s degree in French literature and an M.D. from Brown. She later earned a master’s in clinical investigation from New York University School of Medicine. 

I want to express my immense gratitude to Russell Carey, executive vice president for policy and planning, for stepping in to serve with distinction as interim vice president under challenging circumstances while we conducted the search for our permanent leader of campus life. I also want to thank the full Campus Life staff and especially the division’s executive team for their leadership during this transition. In addition, I am grateful to the search committee and all of the members of the Brown community who contributed to this search. 

I look forward to working with Pat as we continue to shape the student experience at Brown. Please join me in welcoming her to this new role. 

Sincerely,

Christina H. Paxson
President