Jeffery Brown, PhD

Why did you join AWIS and why have you stayed?

I joined AWIS in 1989 after attending an AWIS meeting to hear a presentation about academic dishonesty. There was an impressively focused and brief business meeting followed by a very good topic presentation. At the conclusion, I went down to the chapter president, checkbook in hand, and said “If you’ll take my money I’ll join right now.” I had always been aware of the scarcity of women in my field (astronomy), but I always felt self-conscious about open advocacy of any kind. Several men who put themselves forward in that era as advocates for women did not have the purest of motives and attitudes. I wanted to avoid even the remotest suspicions of that. I also had no interest in joining a man-bashing group. What I saw in AWIS was highly professional, and I was perfectly comfortable in joining and supporting. I even co-chaired a couple of committees over the years. I unreservedly recommend membership in the Association to colleagues and students of all genders.

What’s the most important leadership lesson you’ve learned?

You are always being watched, even when you believe otherwise, so be what you want to be, be what you want others to see you as, and be yourself, all the time, even in bitterest disappointment, and especially when recognized for achievements. Integrating all those is leadership by example.

What do you consider to be your most important career achievement or milestone?

Resigning from tenure-track faculty position due to unjust circumstances, taking a job outside science to support a family and go back where my spouse’s family was; and when laid off, crawling back into science via a side door to get back into what I always really loved. 

What advice do you have for other AWIS members?

First: Everyone complains about committee work, but I urge you seek out and accept such responsibilities where you see a chance to make things better for colleagues, future colleagues, and the community as a whole. As scientists you have been trained to think differently than many people, to analyze problems and discover root causes and bring those to light, and recognize at least some consequences of remedies for those problems. If you’ve been surrounded by other scientists in your daily environment for long enough, you forget just how different that is and how few are the people who can do that. 

Second: Help those in the earlier stages of their scientific careers, whether in your field or not, no matter how early or how far along they may be.  Such help need not consume much of your time, and may need little more than a shift in your attitude as you carry out your duties. You cannot guess how broad your reach may be or how influential you are in developing those junior to you. I taught life science physics — “service” classes — for decades. After my long-time primary care doctor retired in 2022, I got a new one, and we worked out in the intake appointment that he’d taken a class from me in 2008. As I accompanied my wife throughout her 26-month sojourn with ovarian cancer, literally every time we went to a new section of the hospital complex, there was at least one voice that turned around in surprise and said, “Doctor Brown!” It will be from their work that there will be fewer people dying from the disease and fewer grieving people left behind.

Jeffery Brown was born in 1956 in California, attended eight different K-12 schools, ending up in Washington. He received his PhD in 1986, did two postdocs (the second morphed into research faculty), and earned a tenure-track faculty position. Jeffery resigned after four years and spent three years outside of science. He was a scientific programmer for four years, and a non-tenure track faculty for 18 years. Jeffery retired to become a caregiver for his wife. He was awarded professor emeritus status in 2023. Jeffery was widowed in 2024.