PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — At the conclusion of its Thursday evening (May 24, 2012) dinner celebrating the 11-year presidency of Ruth J. Simmons, the Corporation of Brown University made public a recent resolution: The section of Brown’s original 1770 Providence Campus once known as the “lower campus” or Lincoln Field will “be henceforth and in perpetuity known to all as The Ruth J. Simmons Quadrangle.”
“The last eleven years have been a remarkable time of change for Brown. So much has happened during this decade plus, and throughout it all the constant has been the exacting, inspiring, and inspired leadership of our president,” said Brown Chancellor Thomas J. Tisch as he prepared to read the Corporation’s resolution. “The wisdom, the compassion, the integrity, the work ethic, and the vision that the 30 members of the search committee saw in her in 2000 has been a blessing for all things Brown. Ruth, we will be in your debt for many years to come.”
The Corporation chose the lower campus for its celebratory dinner and as an appropriate honor for President Simmons because it has important historic and symbolic significance. All four academic disciplines have facilities on Simmons Quadrangle: physical sciences (planetary geology, Lincoln Field Building), social sciences (sociology, Maxcy Hall), arts and humanities (Leeds Theatre, Ashamu Dance Studio), and life sciences (Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Metcalf Lab). It is bounded to the west by Sayles Hall, site of many historic occasions including Simmons’s introduction as 18th president-elect, and to the east by Soldiers Arch. It is also one of the two parcels of land that formed the original College Hill campus in 1770. Read Full
