Ruth J. Simmons
President Emerita, Brown University; Former President, Prairie View A&M University at Brown University
Ruth J. Simmons is a scholar of Romance languages and literatures who became the first Black president of an Ivy League university when she was named Brown University's 18th president in 2001. She had earlier served as president of Smith College and as provost of Spelman College, and after retiring from Brown in 2012 she led Prairie View A&M University, a historically Black university in Texas, from 2017 to 2023. She subsequently became a President's Distinguished Fellow at Rice University and an adviser at Harvard on engagement with historically Black colleges and universities. President Biden awarded her the National Humanities Medal in October 2024.
Notable Achievements
- First Black president of an Ivy League institution, appointed 18th president of Brown University in 2001
- First African American president of a Seven Sisters college, at Smith College in 1995
- First woman to serve as president of Prairie View A&M University in the institution's nearly 150-year history
- Commissioned Brown's Steering Committee on Slavery and Justice, whose 2006 report prompted similar institutional reckonings at universities nationwide
- Awarded the National Humanities Medal by President Joseph R. Biden in 2024
Expertise & Topics
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