Alumni and friends share, in their own words, why they give back by volunteering their time, talent, and energy for Brown.
While you make a difference for the University with your time and expertise—either by planning events, fundraising, serving on committees or boards, or becoming a social media ambassador—you can also strengthen your connection to Brown, gain new skills, and make memories and friends.
Joy Zheng ’21
“After graduation, I developed a deep appreciation for how amazing my academic and social experience was throughout my four years at Brown. I love to pay it forward so future Brunonians can have the same great experience that I once had.”
Franklin Young ’18
“After I graduated, I realized that the community at Brown does not end at graduation: The Brown community stays with you. I looked up my local alumni club chapter and started volunteering. It felt great to learn that the same spirit you see on campus carries forward even after you leave.”
Patricia A. Buss ’78 MD’81 RES’87
“Being engaged goes beyond the Brown University campus or The Warren Alpert Medical School building. You are not only further developing your own career and life skills or influencing the direction of your alma mater or these students. It’s so much bigger than that—you are helping shape the future of medicine.”
Max Clermont ’11 MPH’12
“I love demystifying the process for my friends who want to stay connected but haven’t figured how. I’ve done everything from interviewing to planning class reunions to serving on class gift committees. They’re slightly different roles, but all working towards the same mission: paying it forward with our time, talent, and treasure. It’s exciting to model the different volunteer opportunities that are often low-barrier and manageable time commitments for alumni.”
Nisha Bansal ’99
“Volunteering for Brown has been very meaningful to me, both personally and professionally. On a personal level, it has allowed me to stay connected to a community that has shaped my values at an early age. Serving alongside alumni from across generations has been really fun. It’s been a joy to reconnect, share stories, and build new relationships rooted in a shared experience. It has also reinforced the importance of service within my own family.”
Eldridge H. Gilbert III ’05
“I give back to Brown because it has given so much to me. I owe much of who I am—my beliefs, convictions, and close relationships—to my time at Brown. It was a journey of self-discovery in which I learned about the complexities of people and problems throughout the world, and it helped me understand how I wanted to relate to and address those issues.”
Mandy Tachiki ’95, P’27
“I love the Brown community, and volunteering is an easy, fun way to stay connected to this incredible group of people. The community is just full of life, full of passion, intellectually curious, and also caring and kind.”
Harry Holt ’84, P’16
“I believe that Brown University is the greatest university on the planet—in part because of the contributions of alumni like us who are giving back and serving the communities which we are a part of around the world.”
See how Brown volunteers were celebrated at the 2025 Volunteer Summit
Molly Hawksley Murphy ’09
“Brown provides a truly one-of-a-kind undergraduate experience that is hard to articulate, but I believe every Brown alum recognizes how special it is. I feel privileged to have had that opportunity and want to pay it forward to ensure the next generation of Brown student-athletes continue to have the best opportunities.”
Evan Geller ’99
“My Brown experience made a profound impact on the course of my life. Although more than 25 years now stand between me and my days on campus, I still feel a gravitational pull back to Brown. Serving on the Brown Alumni Association has been a joy and a privilege, and it has exposed me all over again to Brown’s brilliant faculty and students. Like many other volunteers, I would like to do my part to help the institution and strengthen our alumni community.”
Explore the many available opportunities to find the right fit for you.