Dear Brown Community,

Since its launch just over two months ago, The Brown Promise: The Future of Financial Aid at Brown has generated a response that is nothing short of phenomenal. We had an ambitious first-phase goal. We set out to raise $30 million by December 2017 to make it possible to eliminate loans in University financial aid packages for all current and incoming undergraduates starting with the 2018-19 academic year.

I am delighted to announce that we have reached that goal, thanks to strong annual fund giving since the launch of the campaign, a surge of support on Giving Tuesday Nov. 28 and generous endowment gifts. For current and incoming domestic and international students, Brown will replace loans in University financial aid packages with scholarships that do not have to be repaid.

It has been impressive to see how The Brown Promise has inspired people of all ages and backgrounds. We have seen an outpouring of generosity from alumni across the generations — from the 1950s to the 2010s — as well as current members of the Brown senior class, and parents and friends of the University, all stepping up to strengthen the future of financial aid at Brown.

As I shared in September, Brown made a commitment 15 years ago to make a Brown education more accessible to students from all income backgrounds. But that was not all. We also were determined that, once students are at Brown, they would feel free to study what they love. True to the Open Curriculum, students should carve educational and career paths that are best for them, and not influenced by the burden of loans.

While reaching the $30 million milestone is a major step toward realizing this vision, there is still much to do to ensure that The Brown Promise can be implemented for the longer term. We have an ambitious goal as part of the BrownTogether campaign to raise another $90 million to reach the $120 million total needed to fully fund the initiative. If the enthusiasm and dedication we’ve seen from the Brown community in the past few months is any indication, I feel confident that we can rise to this challenge.

I hope you’ll read more about The Brown Promise in the University’s news announcement here:

https://news.brown.edu/articles/2017/12/promise

This initiative takes financial aid at Brown to the next level, helping us stay true to our mission to bring the most talented students to Brown regardless of their socioeconomic background.

Sincerely,

Christina Paxson
President, Brown University