Brown University, in Providence, Rhode Island, was founded in 1764 under a charter granted by the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. The Corporation of Brown University, made up of a 12-member Board of Fellows and a 42-member Board of Trustees, is its primary governing body.
Brown describes itself as a University-College, with undergraduate education based in the College. Its other units are the Graduate School, the School of Engineering, the School of Professional Studies, the School of Public Health, the Warren Alpert Medical School and the Watson School of International and Public Affairs. Brown reports 11,164 students: 7,196 undergraduates, 3,369 graduate students and 599 medical students. Christina H. Paxson has been president since 1 July 2012.