The Brown Corporation — the University’s highest governing body — is currently undergoing elections for its New Alumni Trustee and Alumni Trustee positions. The voting period will close on May 2.
The Corporation oversees the University’s long-term development through responsibilities such as selecting the University president and setting the budget.
Established in 2009, the New Alumni Trustee position provides the opportunity for newly graduated alums to serve on the Corporation. New Alumni Trustees hold the same responsibilities as other members of the Corporation but contribute a perspective closer to the current student experience, according to the Corporation’s webpage.
The Corporation has two positions for New Alumni Trustees, who serve in staggered three-year terms. One New Alumni Trustee position is up for election this cycle. Only undergraduate, graduate and medical students in their last year of study, as well as alumni who have graduated in the past three years, are eligible for candidacy. Graduating students and alumni within five years of graduation are eligible to place ballots in the New Alumni Trustee election.
One Alumni Trustee position is also open for election this year. Trustees usually serve six-year terms, and all alumni are eligible to vote for the position. A third of Brown’s trustees are elected through the Alumni Election — a process held every year.
The Herald obtained a copy of the candidates’ biographies. Here are the candidates for the New Alumni Trustee and Alumni Trustee elections.
Kevin Boyce Jr. ’21 MPA’22: New Alumni Trustee
Kevin Boyce Jr. ’21 MPA’22 graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business, entrepreneurship and organizations, as well as a master’s of public affairs. At Brown, he served on the Task Force on Anti-Black Racism and the Student Advisory Board of the Brown Center for Students of Color. Boyce’s efforts have earned him the University’s Master’s Award for Engaged Citizenship and Community Service.
Boyce works as a consultant at global professional services network Deloitte, where he specializes in higher education. He also mentors current Brown students and serves on Beta Omega Chi Fraternity’s alumni board.
“Brown is special because of its commitment to protecting academic freedoms,” Boyce wrote in his candidate biography. “It’s special because we understand the importance of bringing people together from diverse perspectives to pursue its mission.”
Kathryn Thompson PhD’23: New Alumni Trustee
Kathryn Thompson PhD’23 obtained her PhD in health services research at Brown’s School of Public Health. While at Brown, she looked to improve student life and strengthen graduate student support through her work with the Graduate Student Council, Samuel M. Nabrit Black Graduate Student Association and Brown University Community Council. Thompson also served on a Brown PhD admissions committee and other University-wide search committees for leadership roles.
Since graduation, Thompson has worked as an assistant professor at the Boston University School of Public Health. She hopes to serve on the Corporation to “give back to the institution that has given me so much,” Thompson wrote in her biography, adding that she believes in “Brown’s mission and its commitment to students, staff, faculty and the Providence community.”
Jada Wooten ’24: New Alumni Trustee
Jada Wooten ’24 received her bachelor’s degree from Brown in education studies and theatre arts and performance studies. During her time at Brown, she was co-president of the Black Student Union and a recipient of various University awards and fellowships like the Royce Fellowship and the Undergraduate Student Leader of the Year Award. Wooten is currently pursuing the Harvard Graduate School of Education’s master’s program in education leadership, organization and entrepreneurship.
“My time at Brown reflects the university’s strong valuing of academics, diversity, public service and the arts,” Wooten wrote in her candidate biography. “As a trustee, I would strive to embody these values because they made my time at Brown feel like home.”
Zaid Ashai ’99: Alumni Trustee
Zaid Ashai ’99 graduated with a bachelor’s degree in international relations and economics. He was a Royce Fellow and senior editor of the Brown Journal of World Affairs. Ashai is currently the CEO of Nexamp, a solar company focused on clean energy solutions. He has over two decades of experience in sustainability, finance and entrepreneurship, and has lectured on these subjects at Brown.
“Brown University shaped the way I think, lead and engage with the world,” Ashai wrote in his biography. “I would be honored to serve as a trustee, ensuring that Brown remains a place where bold ideas thrive, inclusion and equity are prioritized and students are empowered and equipped to shape a more just and sustainable world.”
Tanya Katerí Hernandez ’86 P’20: Alumni Trustee
Tanya Katerí Hernandez ’86 P’20 received her bachelor’s degree in sociology. She is currently a professor of law and an associate director of the Center on Race, Law and Justice at Fordham University. Hernandez was awarded a Fulbright Scholar Specialist Grant in 2015 to consult on racial equality projects in Paris and Trinidad. She has numerous publications, including “Racial Subordination in Latin America: The Role of the State, Customary Law and the New Civil Rights Response” and “Racial Innocence: Unmasking Latino Anti-Black Bias and the Struggle for Equality.”
“Not only did Brown allow me to flourish with its Open Curriculum, it nurtured and supported me before there was such a thing as The Brown Promise and need-blind admissions,” Hernandez wrote in her biography. “I would be honored to be afforded the opportunity to continue being of service as a trustee seeking to assist Brown (in upholding) its traditions of inclusion and unfettered intellectual curiosity,” she added.
Andrea Razzaghi ’82: Alumni Trustee
Andrea Razzaghi ’82 graduated with her bachelor’s degree in engineering. Currently, she serves as the director of the NASA Office of Jet Propulsion Laboratory Management and Oversight. She has also worked as NASA’s deputy director of astrophysics and a senior policy analyst in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Razzaghi was the 2014 recipient of the Brown University Engineering Alumni Medal.
“The ethos of the Brown community, with its emphasis on intellectual independence, social consciousness, collaboration and the spirit of open inquiry, informed the way I carry myself through life and the world,” Razzaghi wrote in her biography. “I would be honored and delighted to continue service to Brown as a trustee to assure the special Brown experience nurtures the next generations of scholars and leaders.”
Roma Shah is a senior staff writer covering University Hall and higher education. She's a freshman from Morgan Hill, CA and studies Neuroscience. In her free time, she can be found doing puzzles, hiking or curled up with a book.
