Biography

Elizabeth Howlett is the Director of Special Projects for the Provost, with responsibility for the development and implementation of new initiatives. She joined the University of Rhode Island’s Office of the Provost following a career in policy and program development. After working in health care financing and consulting, she entered public service, serving ten years as a State Senator and two terms as Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island.

Howlett served as Secretary of Health and Human Services for Governor Gina Raimondo 2015-2017. Subsequently, she worked at the Milbank Memorial Fund, a public health foundation, supporting the engagement of state leaders from across the country in the development of health policy and advocacy. She also consulted with Rhode Island organizations as they sought to strengthen their administration and programming.

In the spring of 2020, Elizabeth joined URI as the Director of the Academic Health Collaborative, focusing on the expansion of interprofessional education and collaborative research across the Colleges of Nursing, Health Sciences and Pharmacy.

In her current capacity, she will work collaboratively with key faculty and administrative leadership to develop and manage special projects in support of the University’s Strategic Plan – Focus URI. Howlett will leverage cross-college teams to identify opportunities to advance research and academic initiatives. Her work will also engage Government Relations, Marketing and Communication, the URI Foundation and Alumni Engagement, and the URI Research Foundation to strengthen and support strategic opportunities with external partners.