The Center's offices initially were located at the Coro Building, at One Hoppin Street, Providence, RI. We moved to our current offices in the Brown Public Health building at 121 South Main Street in 2006. Dr. Gans succeeded Dr. Lasater as Center director from 2009-2014. Matthew Mimiaga, ScD, MPH became the Center's director in 2015; David Williams, PhD, became director in 2017.

During its October 2016 meeting, the Corporation of Brown University approved the Center's request to change its name to the Center for Health Equity Research. In 2020 the name was changed to Center for Health Promotion and Health Equity. The name change to Center for Health Promotion and Health Equity more accurately encompasses the expanding scope of the Center’s work, which includes health promotion, health equity, community health, social and behavioral sciences, as well as work with marginalized populations, both domestic and global.