Penn State Intercom......May 23, 2002
Brighton assumes
new post in Chicago
By Annemarie Mountz
Public Information
John
A. Brighton, chairman of the Teaching and Learning Consortium (TLC) and
executive vice president and provost emeritus, has announced his plans
to leave the University, effective at the end of June. Brighton has accepted
a position as provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs at
National-Louis University with headquarters in Chicago. He will begin
on a part-time basis this month and take the position full-time on July
1.
"John has done so much for this University during his tenure here," said Rodney A. Erickson, executive vice president and provost. "He helped to shape the direction of the University while provost, and for the last three years he has been the driving force behind the successes of the Teaching and Learning Consortium. He was committed to improving the learning experience for students while still provost, and he has devoted his efforts full time to that goal during his time with the TLC. He has laid a strong foundation on which the University will continue to build in the area of improving the way students learn."
Under Brighton,
the TLC has fostered an academic culture that emphasizes active learning
by students, rather than the imparting of information by faculty. The
results of his work have been impressive. The TLC fosters an academic
culture in which faculty and students work in teams to educate each other;
information technology is used in innovative ways; and course
s
interlink with and support each other.
"I have enjoyed 25 years of being part of this great university and the State College community," said Brighton. "There are many, many really dedicated people who work every day to make this the quality institution that it is. While I am looking forward to this new opportunity, I will miss very much working with the people of Penn State."
Through the TLC and the Center for Quality and Planning the University has continued to look for ways to improve efficiency and collaboration among units. As part of that ongoing effort, Erickson recently announced some key changes in the organization of programs in Undergraduate Education. The TLC will be moved into the Schreyer Institute for Innovation in Learning along with the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching and University Testing Services.
Before his current appointment as chairman of the TLC, Brighton served as executive vice president and provost for eight years. In that role, he was responsible to the president for the administration of the University's resident instruction, continuing education and research programs and procedures, and for the general welfare of the faculty and students.
Early in his tenure as provost, Brighton served as chair of the University Future Committee, which in 1992 was charged with the task of developing initiatives to increase the quality and national reputation of the institution. He also chaired the University Planning Council and was instrumental in helping the University deal with change through the principles of continuous improvement. The University Council on Continuous Quality Improvement was appointed in 1991 and the University CQI Center, now the Center for Quality and Planning, was established by Brighton in 1992.
Before becoming provost, Brighton served as dean of the College of Engineering from 1988-1991; director of the School of Mechanical Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology from 1982-1988; and as chairman of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Michigan State University from 1977-1982. Brighton served as an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Carnegie-Mellon University before his initial appointment at Penn State in 1965, where he worked his way through the academic ranks to become professor of mechanical engineering.
Born in Gosport, Ind., Brighton received his bachelor's degree, master's degree and doctorate in mechanical engineering from Purdue University.
National-Louis University is a private, independent university founded in Chicago in 1886. It consists of three colleges: National College of Education; College of Arts and Sciences; and College of Management and Business. The enrollment is approximately 14,000 students.
National-Louis University has five campuses in the Chicago area. The main campus is in the loop across from the Art Institute of Chicago, with the other four campuses at Elgin, Evanston, Wheaton and Wheeling. It also has campuses in Orlando, Fla.; Atlanta; Heidelberg, Germany; St. Louis; Virginia and Washington, D.C.; Nowy Sacz, Poland; Beloit; and Milwaukee.
Annemarie Mountz can be reached at AMountz@psu.edu.