Philip E. Austin (born March 25, 1942)[1] is an American economist who served as the 13th president of the University of Connecticut from October 1, 1996 to September 14, 2007.
He was an honored member of the Sigma Chi fraternity on campus, where his life efforts were later credited with the Significant Sig recognition award.
[3] Austin served in the United States Army from 1969 through 1971 as an economist stationed at the US military headquarters in Saigon, Vietnam.
[4][6] Austin subsequently transitioned to academic administration, serving as director of the interdisciplinary doctoral program in public policy at George Washington University.
[7] From 1989 to 1996, Austin served as chancellor of the University of Alabama System, which included campuses in Tuscaloosa, Birmingham, and Huntsville.
[9] Notwithstanding these fundraising successes, a planned private-public partnership with Pfizer, which would have led to the construction of a $35 million animal vaccine research facility on the scenic Horsebarn Hill in Storrs, foundered in 1999 in the face of intense opposition from local citizens and environmentalists.
UConn's football program advanced to Division I-A with the construction of the Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field, which opened in 2003 in East Hartford.
[12] Following his successor Michael Hogan's abrupt departure three years later, Austin returned to serve as UConn's interim president from June 2010 through May 2011.
[14][6] At the request of Governor Dannel Malloy, Austin served as interim president of the Connecticut Board of Regents for Higher Education from October 2012 through June 2013.
He served on the boards of Connecticut United for Research Excellence, the Governor’s Council on Economic Competitiveness and Technology, and the MetroHartford Alliance.