MILWAUKEE — Christy L. Brown, JD, will be inaugurated as the ninth president of Alverno College on Friday, May 3.
Brown took over the post in July 2023, but her formal inauguration was scheduled to coincide with Alverno’s annual Founders Day Celebration programming.
“I see a comparable goal in Alverno’s mission to prepare women for personal and professional distinction and meaningful engagement with the world,” Brown said when she was named president. “To lead Alverno College -- embracing its unique identity, Franciscan values, dedication to women’s education and commitment to social justice, inclusion and equity -- will be a privilege and extraordinary opportunity to continue to impact the city from which I come.”
Brown was a first-generation college student. According to Alverno's data, 66% of its student population is comprised of first-generation students.
Brown graduated from Stanford University with a bachelor of arts in psychology in 1987. Brown then pursued a joint-degree, earning her Juris Doctor from Duke University School of Law and a master of arts in humanities with a focus on African American and women’s studies from Duke University Graduate School.
As president of Alverno, she will collaborate with the college’s board of trustees, leadership team, faculty and staff.
Before Alverno, Brown was CEO at Girl Scouts of Wisconsin Southeast. Her previous roles included vice chancellor of finance and administrative affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, executive vice president and general counsel at Milwaukee Area Technical College, vice president and corporate counsel at Lutheran Social Services and associate attorney at Michael Best & Friedrich, LLC.
The inauguration will include an interfaith prayer service, delegates from Duke University and representatives from colleges and universities from around the state.
Brown’s high school choir, the Rufus King International High School Chorus, will also perform. The event will take place in the Pitman Theatre at 10 a.m.
The service will be followed by a lunch and reception in La Verna Commons
The event will be live streamed, here.