On Tuesday, the Brown University Community Council — a forum for the campus community to discuss University-related issues and the advisory body for the Brown Ever True initiative — held a meeting to discuss initiatives following the mass shooting and the findings of the 2025-26 Campus Climate Survey.
President Christina Paxson P’19 P’MD’20 began the meeting by addressing the Dec. 13 shooting, noting that it “is now part of Brown’s history.”
“We’ve been through a lot of hard things over the last 260 years,” she said. “This may be the worst.”
Paxson emphasized her desire for the community to embrace what she called Brown’s “character traits” — curiosity, joy, openness and kindness — while moving forward.
She concluded by outlining security measures implemented after the shooting and discussing the two ongoing campus safety reviews conducted by global consulting firm Teneo.
“People can’t thrive in an academic community if they don’t feel safe,” Paxson said at the meeting.
In March, Teneo will have an “intensive” presence on campus, and members of the firm’s review team will attend the next public BUCC meeting to answer questions from the community and share some of their findings, Paxson said. The firm will lead focus groups with members of the Brown and Providence communities through April, she added.
At the meeting, Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion Matthew Guterl presented the findings of the Campus Climate Survey conducted in the fall. He noted that a significant majority of students agree or strongly agree that they feel a sense of belonging at Brown, and over 90% of undergraduates would recommend Brown to students like them. Guterl also addressed the elevated rates of harassment and discrimination reported by students who identify with minority groups.
He listed steps the University plans to take following the results of the climate survey, which include increasing support for open dialogue on campus and expanding training on social media harassment and discrimination.
The University also plans to expand its Office of Equity Compliance and Reporting, which supports students who report harassment, Guterl added.
In late spring, Brown will receive a full analysis of the survey’s results from Rankin Climate — the external vendor that conducted the survey — which will guide the University’s immediate action plan.
Because of the shooting, the University delayed the climate survey for faculty and staff members from this spring until the fall. According to Guterl, a new action plan for diversity and inclusion will be drafted after both surveys have been completed and assessed.
“We’re not deferring the work of diversity and inclusion, just the creation of a new action plan,” he said.
At the meeting, Vice President for Human Resources Marie Williams discussed Brown’s “roadmap to recovery” following the shooting, which includes efforts to “foster collaboration and continuity across the University” and “align short and long-term recovery initiatives.”
Wellness and Benefits Programs Assistant Director Jennifer McKay shared that every faculty and staff member will be offered 20 free mental health counseling sessions in 2026 through Spring Health, Brown’s Employee Assistance Program, doubling the number of sessions offered in 2025.
Mary Jo Callan, vice president for community engagement and executive director of the Swearer Center for Public Service, shared information about the University’s “Brown Loves Providence” campaign set to launch on Valentine’s Day.
She described the initiative as a “tangible way for us to show how grateful we are and how much we love this place that is our home and that embraced us in our moment of need.”
The campaign will encourage community members to volunteer in Providence, put up Brown Loves Providence posters and stickers and post on social media to thank local businesses and police or fire agencies, Callan said.
BUCC Undergraduate Representative Alec Huang ’28 encouraged people to attend future meetings to raise concerns and ask questions about campus issues.
“I also want people to know that they can talk to me if they want me to bring something up at these meetings,” they said, adding that they “would like for there to be more transparency” between community members and the BUCC.
Jeremiah Farr is a senior staff writer covering university hall and higher education.
