What we learned at the State of Brown Address

President Paxson held a conversation, organized by UCS, with the Brown community during the annual State of Brown Address on Tuesday, announcing several initiatives and expanding upon others, from the recently released Diversity Inclusion Action Plan to whether or not winter break is boring, to what dorm you should choose in the Housing Lottery.Sazzy Gourley, President of UCS, kicked off the evening by emphasizing that the event marked "the only time undergraduates have the opportunity to communicate directly with the president in a public forum about the issues we care about most."President Paxson, with many other administrators in attendance, described projects that have been, and will continue to be, on their agenda this year. The past few years have been dedicated to working on the strategic plan, which recently culminated in the "Brown Together" campaign. The campaign's ambitious $3 million goal will focus on investments in people—a diverse staff, faculty, and student body—academics, and campus community.The Diversity Inclusion Action Plan (DIAP), which was released a month ago, was a central focus of the evening. Paxson described how all academic departments are currently forming their own DIAP plans to increase the diversity of their faculty and student body, as well as what that means for their curriculum.Paxson also updated the community on programs at Brown dedicated to enhancing the student experience. For example, the Engaged Scholars Program, which allows students to integrate their academic work with work in the Providence community, is expanding to more concentrations. Additionally, BrownConnect, an online platform to help Brown students connect with alumni and internships in different fields, seems to have been a success with over 40,000 student-alumni connections.She also provided a remedy for students who get bored binge-watching Netflix over our lengthy winter break: Winter Session! Brown's first Winter Session will launch in 2017 as a pilot program offering approximately 10 courses. Students can come back to Brown shortly after the new year and take one course for credit; this course can be on campus, or potentially online or somewhere around the country or world.Paxson also announced a new way to search for courses, the opening of a First-Gen Student Center in the SciLi, updates on the plans for the new Nelson Entrepreneurship Center, upcoming expansions in Counseling and Psychological Services, as well as an initiative to better integrate CAPS and Health Services.And, just in time for the start of the Housing Lottery, Paxson announced that Perkins Hall and Barbour Hall will be renovated this summer and suggested, "if you were thinking of another dorm, you might want to switch into one of these." About time.Students expressed concerns that implementing and following the DIAP might require a burden of work by administrators and academic departments that it might not be able to be sustained and accomplished. Paxson responded by reiterating that whole university takes responsibility for this plan. Provost Richard Locke added that the administration is trying to be careful not to add a lot of labor onto community members.Paxson was also asked to compile a consolidated list of commencement-related expenses students will incur. Members of the administration assured students they are working on compiling a list. Additionally, the administration working toward creating a new position—an Assistant Dean for Financial Advising—to advise students on the best way to plan for costs they will face at Brown.Other questions related to initiatives Brown is taking to keep tuition costs low and insuring tuition money is being spent responsibly. Paxson as well, as other members of the administration, assured they are constantly working hard toward these goals. Another student asked about the state of the Arts at Brown, to which Paxson responded that there are plans for a new performing arts center in place.One student asked about efforts being made to diversify the DPS staff and what kinds of new training they will be receiving and in what form. Paxson's responded that she would work with the administration to learn the details of new aspects of DPS training and share them with the community.Image via.