Brown University plays a vital role in the economy of Providence and Rhode Island — as a top employer, community partner and driver of economic vitality. With a deep and longstanding commitment to investing in the community it calls home, the University is the largest voluntary financial contributor to the city, injecting hundreds of millions of dollars into the local economy each year. 

Invested in our Community

As a nonprofit educational institution, Brown is tax exempt, but pursuant to agreements with the City of Providence, the University makes voluntary payments to the City each year. Through a memorandum of understanding and memorandum of agreement with the City, both finalized in October 2023 to build upon prior MOU and MOA agreements, Brown will provide $303 million in voluntary payments and community contributions between 2024 and 2043. The University also pays $14 million in utilities to Providence Water, Rhode Island Energy and Narragansett Bay.

FY24 Community Contributions to the City of Providence

FY25 Community Contributions to the City of Providence

For decades, Brown has worked closely with school leaders in Providence to support K-12 education through teaching, training and mentoring, research, volunteer efforts and financial investments that align with those schools' priorities.

Brown has multiple departments and programs dedicated to accelerating solutions to the most complex climate and sustainability challenges of our time through interdisciplinary research, teaching and impact.

As a research university with the state's only schools of medicine and public health, Brown contributes to world-class medical care, strong patient outcomes and innovative solutions for pressing health challenges facing communities across Rhode Island through its Warren Alpert Medical School, School of Public Health and affiliated programs.