PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Greg Hirth, a professor of earth, environmental and planetary sciences at Brown University, has been appointed the University’s vice president for research.
The vice president oversees all Division of Research offices and teams as they collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to accelerate the global impact of Brown’s research and scholarship. Hirth has served in the role in an interim basis since September, and Brown Provost Francis J. Doyle III shared news of his longer-term appointment in a Tuesday, Feb. 4, letter to the University community.
“Throughout his time leading the Division of Research, Greg has contributed a wealth of expertise to Brown’s research enterprise,” Doyle wrote. “I look forward to continuing to work closely with Greg and to collaborating with him and the entire Division of Research staff to support Brown’s ambitious research goals.”
Under Hirth’s direction since October, the Division of Research has seen a record number of submissions to the University’s internal SEED and Salomon grant programs, leveraging new funds for research in the humanities and humanistic social sciences. It has also continued its stewardship of Brown’s annual research grants portfolio, which for the most recent fiscal year totaled $293 million in expenditures and $295 million in new awards to Brown scholars.
In recent weeks, Doyle noted, Hirth has been instrumental in helping Brown researchers navigate shifting grant submission guidelines and new directives from federal agencies following the U.S. presidential transition.
As vice president, Hirth will continue to advance Brown’s mission and impact by supporting faculty and students in all aspects of their research activities, from the conception of new ideas through the dissemination of the knowledge they create. Identifying the highest research needs of faculty across the University, he will serve as an advocate for their support, and collaborate with senior academic and administrative leaders on research initiatives and policy development. Working closely with Deputy Vice President for Research Marty Scholtz, Hirth will lead research operations and drive major, multi-phase initiatives in the research space.
Hirth said that the vice president for research role offers an opportunity to build on his own experiences as a geophysics scholar and oversee programs, initiatives, actions and structures to support Brown’s community of world-class researchers.
“As an administrator, I’m excited to continue to provide a faculty researcher perspective to benefit other faculty members and enable groundbreaking research,” Hirth said. “There are so many amazing projects going on in every field you can think of, from the life sciences to engineering and the physical sciences to the humanities, arts and social sciences — there is such a breadth of possibility for research at Brown.”
Hirth is recognized internationally for his groundbreaking work in tectonophysics, a field of geophysics that studies the movement of the Earth's crustal plates, the formation of mountains and earthquakes, and other tectonic phenomena. He has led research teams that have significantly advanced the understanding of deep-earth earthquakes and the processes driving the formation and deformation of lithospheric plates.
In 2024, Hirth was elected to both the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, two of the highest honors a scholar can achieve. In recognition of his contributions, he has also received the prestigious George P. Woollard Award from the Geological Society of America, among numerous other accolades. Beyond his academic achievements, Hirth has demonstrated leadership within the American Geophysical Union and served as chair of Brown’s Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences.
Hirth earned his bachelor’s degree in geological sciences from Indiana University, followed by master's and doctoral degrees in geological sciences from Brown. He succeeds Jill Pipher, a professor of mathematics who served as vice president for research for six years until returning to teaching and research upon the culmination of her term as vice president on June 30, 2024.