Brian K. Payne is the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs at Old Dominion University, where he is tenured in the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice. As Provost, he serves as the chief academic officer of the institution and is responsible for academic success and faculty affairs initiatives. He also oversees the Batten College of Engineering and Technology, College of Arts and Letters, College of Sciences, Darden College of Education and Professional Studies, Graduate School, Perry Honors College, Strome College of Business, and University Libraries, as well as the three interdisciplinary schools.

He is a former editor of the American Journal of Criminal Justice and a past president of the Southern Criminal Justice Association and the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences. Dr. Payne is the author or co-author of more than 160 journal articles and seven books including White-Collar Crime: The Essentials (Sage), Family Violence and Criminal Justice (Elsevier with Randy Gainey), Crime and Elder Abuse: An Integrated Perspective (Charles C. Thomas), Introduction to Criminal Justice: A Balanced Approach (Sage, with Will Oliver and Nancy Marion). Dr. Payne led the development of three interdisciplinary schools at ODU, the School of Cybersecurity, the School of Data Science, and the School of Supply Chain, Logistics, and Maritime Operations, and was the founding director of the Coastal Virginia Center for Cyber Innovation. He has been PI or Co-PI on grants totaling more than $11 million.