Robert Ernest Vinson (November 4, 1876 – September 2, 1945) was president of the University of Texas at Austin from 1916 to 1923.

[1] He was born on November 4, 1876, in White Oak, South Carolina, to John Vinson (1845–1917) and Mary Elizabeth Brice (1843–1895).

He earned a bachelor's degree from Austin College in 1896.

He earned a divinity degree from Union Theological Seminary in Virginia in 1899.

[1] He was buried in West Hill Cemetery in Sherman, Texas.