Assistant Vice President, Marketing
Nicci Brown is the Assistant Vice President for Marketing in the Office of Strategic Communications and Marketing. She leads SCM’s video operation and interfaces with the university’s colleges and other units on targeted communications campaigns and projects. She also is the host of the From Florida podcast.
An award-winning journalist and communications leader, Nicci has more than 30 years of experience. She has overseen enterprise-level brand identity research and development projects, institutional reputation management and multiple website redesigns. In addition to this, she is skilled in fund-raising and enrollment management communications, as well as content creation and planning.
Prior to relocating to Florida with her family in 2021, Nicci was the Chief Communications Officer at the University of Vermont. As a member of the president’s senior staff, she played a key role in strategic planning and executive communications, including UVM’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and government and community relations. She worked closely with UVM trustees, as well as the UVM Foundation.
Nicci also spent more than 20 years working at Syracuse University. She held a variety of roles, rising through the ranks to become Vice President of Communications and Chief Marketing Officer, overseeing development and enrollment management communications. In addition to this, Nicci was a leader and strategist in the development of numerous university events that hosted world leaders, including Nobel Laureates and U.S. ambassadors, attracting national and international recognition.
A native of Australia, Nicci earned her BA in journalism from the University of South Australia. She started her communications career as a newspaper reporter before building a career in broadcast journalism and anchoring a current affairs radio program for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. She was awarded a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship and completed her MS in broadcast journalism at Syracuse University.
Nicci and her husband, Hub Brown, have two children, Maddi who is studying photojournalism at Syracuse University, and Jay, who attends high school in Gainesville. Nicci is step “mum” to Sacheen and “glamma” to Sacheen’s daughter Umi, who both live in Seattle. Her family also includes a Havanese pup, Domino, who is truly the boss, and three adopted parakeets, Bluey, Tofu and Taffy (who Domino learns to love a little more every day).