JoAnn Browning pivots to a leadership role in natural hazards research network

NOVEMBER 26, 2024 — After serving for 11 years in academic administration at UTSA, JoAnn Browning today announced plans to step down as interim vice president of the Office of Research, effective May 31, 2025.

Browning, a leader in civil engineering, is changing roles to focus on leading the Network Coordination Office (NCO) for the Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI), a shared-use network funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) that supports worldwide hazard mitigation research.

“I am immensely grateful for JoAnn’s leadership in advancing our research and economic development enterprises and driving us toward becoming a great public research university,” said UTSA President Taylor Eighmy. “Her leadership and keen focus on excellence has fueled tremendous growth and further cultivated an innovative environment at UTSA. I know she will bring that same passion and commitment to excellence to the important research program that she is leading in this next chapter of her career.”

Browning said, “As a relatively new R1 research enterprise, our goals have been to establish a solid foundation to expand the scope and impact of UTSA research while cultivating a culture of excellence where our researchers can discover, create knowledge and thrive.”

“Her leadership and keen focus on excellence has fueled tremendous growth and further cultivated an innovative environment at UTSA.”

UTSA research has been on an upward trajectory for several years, with expenditures exceeding $100 million for four consecutive years. Under Browning’s leadership, the UTSA research enterprise grew to $152.3 million in expenditures in FY 2023, up 7.5% from $141.7 million the previous year ($158.5 million counting unrecovered indirect funds). Research expenditures are on track to reach record highs again in FY 2024.

Browning spearheaded several key initiatives during her time as interim vice president. UTSA met the State of Texas’ eligibility criteria to participate in the National Research University Fund (NRUF) and successfully passed the audit by the State Auditor’s Office in August 2023, providing new funding opportunities for the university. She also oversaw the reorganization of the Division of Research, Economic Development and Knowledge Enterprise into the Office of Research, which integrated research administration into academic units.

Meanwhile, she led the team that recruited nationally renowned research administrators and scholars into key leadership positions. These new leaders included David Brown, who was named NSCC executive director in 2023, as well as Lori Schultz as senior associate vice president for research administration and Diana Huffaker as associate vice president for research partnerships and strategy, both of whom were announced earlier this year. Browning also helped launch UTSA’s cluster hiring program, which targets new strategic focus areas to continue to grow the faculty in key fields, optimize collaboration and cultivate talent hubs.

Under Browning’s leadership, UTSA researchers contributed to the UT System’s No. 3 ranking on the National Academy of Inventors’ Top 100 list for R&D in 2024.

Additionally, Browning led UTSA to join a number of prestigious consortiums and partnerships, including a collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy to propel sustainable aviation in San Antonio and UTSA’s membership in the Universities Space Research Association.

Prior to serving as interim vice president for research, Browning served for nine years as dean of the Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design (the Klesse College). As dean, Browning led the creation of the new college, facilitating the partnership of two former colleges: the College of Engineering and the College of Architecture, Construction and Planning. She also worked with Margie and Bill Klesse to establish a $20 million named endowment for the college.

Under Browning’s leadership, the Klesse College built UTSA’s first college student success center and first business service center. The college also pursued its mission to serve Texas by providing new educational opportunities, including Ph.D. programs in civil and chemical engineering, a bachelor's program in chemical engineering (now accredited), and master's programs in engineering education, biomedical devices, aerospace engineering, and facilities management.

The Klesse College nearly tripled its research expenditures during her tenure, hired four national academy members, and added key spaces including the Whitaker 3D Metal Printing Facility, Klesse Unit Operations Laboratory, Engineering MakerSpace, interdisciplinary teaching labs, a high-bay large-scale testing laboratory, and research labs with supporting office space. The college hired numerous outstanding researchers and educators as faculty and saw 15 NSF Career Awards recognized during her term as dean.

In addition to her background in leadership, Browning is an accomplished academic and researcher in the field of civil engineering. Earlier this year, she was honored for her lifetime achievements in engineering, receiving the prestigious Civil Engineering Alumni Achievement Award from her alma mater, Purdue University. She received the American Concrete Institute’s Young Member Award for Professional Achievement in 2008 and was named an ACI Fellow in 2009. In 2016, INSIGHT into Diversity magazine presented her with an Inspiring Women in STEM award. She received the San Antonio Business Journal Women’s Leadership Award in 2018. She was also inducted into the San Antonio Women’s Hall of Fame Class of 2024 in March of this year. Two months later, she received Distinguished Membership in the American Society of Civil Engineers, which is held by only 264 of the organization’s 160,000 total members. 

Browning is active in the engineering community as a Distinguished Member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, as a member and subcommittee chair of the Reinforced Concrete Building Code Committee for the American Concrete Institute (ACI 318), and as a member of the American Society of Engineering Education. Her research interests include structural engineering, earthquake engineering, engineering materials, reinforced concrete design and analysis, and engineering education. She is a licensed professional engineer in the states of Texas and Kansas.

Following her service as interim vice president, Browning will take a leading role on NHERI, a research collaborative she has supported since its inception in 2015. The NSF-funded NHERI is a research ecosystem encompassing a national network of 11 research facilities supporting the multi-hazards research community. Browning will lead the NCO as it coordinates all NHERI activities, builds national and international partnerships and sustains a synergistic community of scholars. Researchers engaged in NHERI aim to mitigate the impact of a range of hazards, including earthquakes, windstorms, tsunamis, storm surge and other water-related hazards that threaten the nation's civil infrastructure and society. This August, the NSF announced plans to continue funding the project through FY 2035.

In addition to her new role at NHERI, Browning will continue to work at UTSA as Lutcher Brown chair and professor of civil engineering in Klesse College.

“As an urban serving university, UTSA is committed to advancing society with innovative solutions,” Browning said. “It has been an incredible honor to serve UTSA as the interim vice president for research, and I am proud of all we have accomplished, driven by a spirit of curiosity, collaboration and entrepreneurship. At the same time, I am equally excited about the opportunity to return to my roots as a civil engineering teacher and researcher, and to advance projects that will help make our nation’s infrastructure more resilient and sustainable.”

— Audrey Gray