\nOrlando Bravo<\/p>\n
Brown University President Christina H. Paxson said the gift from the Bravo Family Foundation will benefit current and future Brown students, who will have the opportunity to learn from and conduct research alongside the leading scholars the University will be able to appoint.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese two endowed professorships position Brown to grow our leading-edge economics department for years to come, while also creating momentum for collaborative scholarship at the Watson School, where we are educating the next generation of policy leaders,\u201d said Paxson, a professor of economics and international and public affairs. \u201cThe generosity of Orlando Bravo and his family will advance\u00a0Brown\u2019s impact as a leading research university by broadening economics and public policy scholarship at a time of momentous challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n
Along with offering a prestigious honor for the appointed faculty members, named professorships provide an ongoing source of financial support for research and teaching in the designated fields of study. Most, including the two new Bravo professorships, are endowed in perpetuity, enabling support for generations of faculty and, in turn, the students they teach.<\/p>\n
The Bravo Family Foundation and Bravo\u2019s gift builds on a legacy of support, which includes a transformative $25 million gift to Brown in 2019, part of which funded the launch of the\u00a0Orlando Bravo Center for Economic Research<\/a>. To date, Bravo and his foundation have donated more than $45 million to the University. A Brown Class of 1992 graduate, Bravo earned a bachelor\u2019s degree in economics and political science and went on to co-found Thoma Bravo, the world\u2019s largest software-focused investment firm, with more than $183 billion in assets under management, where he is a managing partner.<\/p>\n \u201cMy family and the Bravo Family Foundation hope this gift will enable Brown University to continue to recruit the absolute best faculty to support both the Department of Economics and the Watson School,\u201d Bravo said. \u201cWe specifically chose to allocate funding for the professorships to enable professors to explore research in exciting new and expanded ways. We\u2019re glad to be able to support my alma mater in a significant way that will stand to impact future generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n Expanding economics and policy scholarship<\/p>\n John N. Friedman, inaugural dean of the Watson School, said the latest Bravo gift is a critical catalyst to support the strategic growth of research and teaching at the school, which launched in July 2025 and is built on the foundation of the well-established Watson Institute.<\/p>\n \u201cThe strength of the Watson School starts with its faculty, who are jointly appointed from departments across the University,\u201d Friedman said. \u201cThis generous gift\u00a0from Brown University alumnus Orlando Bravo\u00a0will enable our new policy school to expand our dynamic faculty of scholars and teachers at the frontiers of their respective fields, who are coming together to help make breakthroughs and discoveries on the world\u2019s most complex policy challenges.\u201d<\/p>\n A search is underway for the first of the two positions, and the scholar hired could begin as soon as the 2026-27 academic year, said Friedman, a professor of economics and international and public affairs. He expects that Brown will appoint an international economist to teach and conduct research on topics such as global trade and tariffs, supply chains, international currency markets and investments.<\/p>\n Kareen Rozen, chair of Brown\u2019s Department of Economics, said the professorships will help to expand the breadth of top-notch faculty at what is already\u00a0a world-class department<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cPolicy-oriented research is an essential part of what top economics departments do,\u201d Rozen said. \u201cThis collaboration with the Watson School offers an exciting opportunity for growth.\u201d<\/p>\n Rozen said the Bravo Center for Economic Research has been an essential catalyst for high-impact economics research since it launched in 2019. Bravo\u2019s gift has enabled the department to expand funding for faculty and students through new research grants and assistantships, as well as additional support to attend conferences, host lectures, create new \u201cmini courses\u201d and fund visiting scholars at Brown.<\/p>\n \u201cThrough the continued work and development of the Bravo Center, and now these endowed professorships, I see a great investment in our faculty and students, and an opportunity to push the department to the next level,\u201d said Professor of Economics Geoffroy de Clippel, director of the center.<\/p>\n Giving back to expand opportunities<\/p>\n
\nThe gift \u201cwill enable our new policy school to expand our dynamic faculty of scholars and teachers at the frontiers of their respective fields,\u201d said John N. Friedman, inaugural dean of the Watson School. Photo by Azurae Cruz\/Brown University<\/p>\n