Siena College honors Joyce. F. Brown, Ph.D., president of the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). When she was appointed president in 1998, Dr. Brown became the first woman and the first African American to lead the institution. Serving over eleven thousand full and part-time students, the Fashion Institute of Technology is one of the colleges in the State University of New York system. FIT, which was founded in 1944 to prepare students for careers in fashion, today offers more than thirty degree programs.
Dr. Brown has described her career as the "mailroom story," having held several administrative positions of increasing responsibility. While a Ph.D. graduate student in clinical psychology at New York University, she worked full-time as a financial aid counselor. In 1983, she became dean of urban affairs at Bernard Baruch College of the City University of New York (CUNY), followed by service as a vice-chancellor of CUNY. In 1990, she served as interim president of Baruch. From 1994 to 1998, she was in the classroom as a Professor of Clinical Psychology at the Graduate School and University Center of CUNY where she is now Professor Emerita. Dr. Brown left academia for a short while when she served as deputy mayor for public and community affairs in the Office of the Mayor of the City of New York from 1993 to 1994.
Among her many accomplishments at C Y were the coordination of the Urban Summit of City Mayors, collaboration between the New York City Board of Education and CUNY, and, working with the government of South Africa, the creation of professional development programs for South Africans.
Dr. Brown has led the first major fundraising campaign at the Fashion Institute of Technology. This multi-million dollar campaign supports major new strategic initiatives to increase technology, improve facilities, build faculty ranks, expand the curriculum, and improve student services.
Dr. Brown earned her doctorate and master's degree in counseling psychology from New York University, and her bachelor's degree from Marymount College where she served as a trustee from 1994 to 2000. She has also received a certificate from the Institute for Educational Management at Harvard University.
Dr. Brown is the Chief Executive Officer of the Educational Foundation for Fashion Industries. She serves on the board of directors of Polo Ralph Lauren Corp, Neuberger Berman, Inc., Paxar Corporation and USEC, Inc. Dr. Brown has always been active in professional and civic organizations.
Her husband is H. Carl McCall, former Comptroller of the State of New York.
In recognition of her leadership and commitment to public higher education, Siena College awards Joyce F. Brown the honorary degree, Doctor of Letters.