On Jan. 29, American Airlines Flight 5342 collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter, resulting in 67 fatalities. Among the passengers was Christopher Collins MPP’12, who attended Brown from 2010 to 2012.
Collins grew up in Massachusetts and is survived by his parents, brother and wife. Collins was a resident of Stamford, CT at the time of his passing. He was 42 years old.
After earning his bachelor’s degree at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, Collins began his career as a world geography teacher at public schools in North Attleborough. Collins then came to Brown to earn his master’s degree, with the goal of exploring his interests in education policy and public finance, said Jennifer Slattery, who was the assistant director of professional programs at the Taubman Center of Public Policy during the time Collins attended Brown.
“I remember him coming into my office and just talking about (how) he really wanted to make a bigger impact on a broader scale,” Slattery said, adding that Collins was interested in exploring how public money could be used to support higher education.
One project Collins undertook was looking at how social impact bonds could support programs aimed at reducing prisoner recidivism in Rhode Island. He worked alongside Mai Tran MPP’12 and Alison Guerriero MPP’12, both classmates of Collins.
“Chris was just all around really nice, and I think that’s what drew all of us to him,” Tran said. “I don’t think that there is one person who could say anything bad about him.”
Guerriero recalled fond memories of spending time with Collins in the computer lab, describing how “Chris was super smart” yet “struggled to use a computer sometimes.”
“I’d (show him) how to save a copy of a Word document, and … he just got stuck on this simple thing, and then he’s like, over in Stata doing some crazy thing,” Guerriero said. Tran, who dated Collins during their masters program, added that he considered the CTRL+F “find” function “earth shattering.”
Tran, who came from California, said Collins acted as her “personal tour guide” in New England. She described going hiking with Collins in New Hampshire, and although she was terrified of the experience, he was able to guide her through it.
“I think his character really showed … how he is very encouraging and stays calm under pressure, especially when someone who doesn’t like snow is freaking out,” Tran said.
Collins “had a really good talent of being a neutral guy who stayed above the fray of drama,” said Chris Soto MPA’11, a classmate of Collins during his time at Brown. “He was always looking for the positive in any kind of situation that was happening.”
Collins was also “really intentional about staying in touch,” according to Soto.
“He would check up on me, and it was really special to see that,” Soto said, recalling an instance in 2016 when Collins had reached out to congratulate him — a gesture “on brand for Chris.”
Slattery added Collins was smart, “really good-natured” and always aiming to expand his skillset. Within group projects, she described Collins as the “reliable one” who always made sure work got done.
“He had a great sense of humor, kind of a quiet sense of humor where all of a sudden he would come out with such a funny one-liner,” Slattery said.
A statement from Collins’s family described how his “call to the outdoors never wavered, whether it was hiking Lögberg in Iceland” or “camping and rafting in the Great Smoky Mountains.”
After his time at Brown, Collins headed to New York City where he worked at the city’s Office of Management and Budget. He then worked as an analyst at Moody’s Investors Service, eventually becoming a Senior Analyst and Vice President.
“Our family is devastated by the loss of Chris, our beloved husband, son, brother and uncle. Chris was a true adventurer with a passion for the outdoors and a lifelong love of animals,” the statement from his family read. “He will be in our hearts forever.”
Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that Collins lived in New York City at the time of his passing. Collins lived in Stamford, CT. The Herald regrets the error.
Claire Song is a university news and science & research editor for The Herald. She is a sophomore from California studying Applied Math-Biology. She likes to drink boba in her free time.
