PROVIDENCE – The dean of an engineering and applied sciences school at one Ivy League institution will move southward to assume the provost role at another, Brown University.
Brown on Thursday announced that Francis J. Doyle III, the current dean of Harvard University’s John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, has been appointed as the 14th provost in Brown’s history. Doyle will begin his new job as the university’s chief academic officer on July 1 and will take over for Richard M. Locke.
Locke is leaving Brown at the end of this month to become the next vice president and dean of Apple University, part of technology giant Apple Inc. in Cupertino, Calif. Larry Larson, emeritus dean of Brown’s School of Engineering, will serve as interim provost until Doyle begins his new role.
Brown President Christina H. Paxson says Doyle has a decades-long history in academic and research administration, which includes his tenure since 2015 as Harvard Paulson School dean. While as Harvard’s engineering dean, Doyle, Brown said, oversaw financial administration, including operating finances and budgets for sponsored research, as well as fundraising. He has stewarded Harvard’s engineering program during a period of significant growth, with engineering concentrations increasing from 18% to 23% of Harvard’s undergraduate student body, Brown said.
“Frank has an exceptional record of leading a complex academic enterprise through extensive development of new programs, capital planning, faculty recruitment and cultivation of philanthropic investment, all while building and strengthening community,” Paxson said in a letter on Doyle’s hiring.
In his new role at Brown, Doyle will work closely with senior deans, faculty and other administrative colleagues at the Ivy League institution to advance the university’s interdisciplinary approach to education and research, Brown said. Additionally, the university said Doyle will lead capital planning to support the preservation, renewal and expansion of facilities essential for teaching, research and campus life.
Doyle said Thursday in a statement that Brown’s provost position is “an incredible opportunity” to lead the academic direction and research at the university through a period of “ambitious expansion.”
“This resonates strongly with my intrinsic character as an entrepreneur, and as someone with a growth mindset who thrives in an environment of dynamic change,” Doyle said.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter at @James_Bessette.
