Aerospace engineer, Dr Kevin Brown, is fifth UTech President

Newly appointed President of the University of Technology (UTech), Dr Kevin Brown, who is an aerospace engineer and academic, has declared his commitment to ensuring that the tertiary institution becomes a "beacon of excellence".

The university's council, at its meeting held on June 15, unanimously approved the recommendation for Brown's appointment from the Joint Committee of Council and Academic Board, UTech said in a statement on its website on Friday.

Brown will serve for a period of five years, with effect from September 11, 2023.

In accepting the appointment, Brown affirmed that "I am committed to working closely with the entire university community and key stakeholders to ensure that UTech Jamaica becomes a beacon of excellence, empowering our graduates to make significant contributions to the nation and beyond."

UTech said Brown has been a "trailblazer in academia and the aerospace industry for over 18 years". 

It added that, "He is a technical expert in complex and integrated aerospace structural system design and a thought leader in transport systems, engineering materials and numerical computational analysis."

Born and raised in Jamaica, Brown is an alumnus of UTech, where he completed a Diploma (Honours) in Mechanical Engineering, majoring in production, in 2000, and was president of the student's union.

He received a scholarship from Ford Motor Company and earned a Master’s degree and PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Nottingham, the statement said.

UTech Chancellor, Lloyd Carney, in making the announcement of the new president, stated: "I am happy that Dr Brown has agreed to take up the mantle as president of the university at this critical juncture in the institution's history and development.

"The university council is confident that the leadership of this distinguished Jamaican, strategic thinker and alumnus who brings a proven track record as an experienced technology expert with outstanding accomplishments in research, teaching and academic administration, will enhance UTech Jamaica's capacity to fulfil its role as Jamaica's national university in supporting the achievements of the country's development goals," said Carney.

As President of UTech, Brown will carry out the functions of chief academic and administrative officer of the university, reporting directly to the council, through the chancellor.

"He (Brown) will be principally responsible for implementing the council’s policies, and will exercise such executive powers as necessary for the proper administration and operation of the university," UTech added.

In his most recent role, Brown served as Technology Project Lead for Civil Aerospace Technology and Future Programmes at Rolls-Royce – a leading global aerospace company and provider of jet engines for commercial and defence aircraft with over 44,000 employees worldwide. 

He joined Rolls-Royce in 2013, and has held a number of technical and management roles with responsibility for strategic planning, financial management and leadership of global teams across the company’s aerospace business.

Prior to joining Rolls-Royce, Brown was a research fellow in the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Nottingham for five years, where he led "world-class research on developing novel composite materials and structures," according to UTech.

Interestingly, the Jamaican is also an inventor, and holds a patent in America and Britain.

Brown has also authored and won multi-million-pound research grant proposals, has published 22 peer-reviewed journal articles and conference papers, as well as taught university students overseas.

Outside of his record of community engagement in the diaspora, public service and academia over the last 20 years, Brown is a qualified England Cricket Board (ECB) cricket coach and an English Football Association (FA) football coach, UTech stated.

He has also been a guest commentator on BBC radio.