Biography: President John C. Bravman

John Bravman became the 17th president of Bucknell University on July 1, 2010, and was inaugurated on Nov. 14, 2010. An accomplished academic and administrator, he holds a tenured position in the College of Engineering’s Department of Electrical Engineering.

Bravman came to Bucknell after a 35-year career at Stanford University, where for the last decade of his service he led the undergraduate program as the Freeman-Thornton Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and the founding Dean of the Freshman-Sophomore Residential College. He also was the Bing Centennial Professor of Materials Science and Engineering and a Professor of Electrical Engineering, by courtesy. His numerous Stanford honors include the Walter J. Gores Award, the university’s highest teaching honor; and the Kenneth M. Cuthbertson Award, the university’s highest award for lifetime service. He is one of only two people in Stanford history to win both awards.

He has written and taught primarily in the fields of materials structure and analysis, thin-film mechanical phenomena, microelectronic reliability and high-temperature superconductivity. Early in his career, Bravman pioneered new applications of transmission electron microscopy to various studies of thin-film structures. He has coauthored more than 160 scholarly publications. At Stanford, he served the scholarly community through work on various government panels, editorial boards and scientific societies. A highly sought technical consultant, he has been an expert witness in numerous intellectual property, product liability and trade secret arbitration and litigation matters.

Bravman earned his B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering from Stanford in 1979. He remained at Stanford for his graduate education in materials science, completing his M.S. in 1981 and his Ph.D. in 1984. His thesis work comprised structural analyses of silicon-silicon dioxide interfaces.

Stanford experience

While completing his doctorate, Bravman was appointed Assistant Professor in his department. He was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure in 1991 and to Full Professor in 1995. In 2001 he was appointed Professor, by courtesy, of Electrical Engineering. Bravman held several academic-administrative positions and appointments at Stanford, including Department Chair from 1996 to 1999 and Senior Associate Dean in the School of Engineering from 1993 to 2001.

In the spring of 1999 he was elected Chair of the Faculty Senate, but by policy vacated that position when he was appointed, later that year, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education. In this role, he led a far-ranging transformation of Stanford’s undergraduate experience through programs that strengthened faculty-student relationships, added core curriculum requirements for the humanities as well writing and oral presentation, created comprehensive advising and reinvigorated residential education. In 1999 he established Stanford’s first two-year residential college and served as its Dean for 10 years.

He made special contributions to Stanford in the areas of access and retention. He created the Stanford Summer Engineering Academy, a program designed for entering Stanford undergraduates from under-resourced school districts. He worked closely with the Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid to attract and recruit students from all backgrounds, and served on the University’s Diversity Cabinet.

Bravman played a pivotal role in the Campaign for Undergraduate Education, which raised more than $1.1 billion and reignited support for Stanford’s undergraduate mission. He served on the president’s Needs Assessment Task Force and was engaged in the Stanford Challenge, the $4.3 billion capital campaign that grew out of that task force.

Bucknell engagement

Bravman’s dedication to excellence in undergraduate education has already shaped his presidency. He strongly supports the five strategic goals of The Plan for Bucknell: strengthening the academic core, deepening the residential learning experience, enhancing diversity, building bridges to the world and securing the University’s financial future. With support from the Board of Trustees, he is re-energizing the planning process as well as review and discussion of Plan goals during the 2011-2012 academic year.
He began work immediately to advance Bucknell’s campus master plan, which aims to provide the academic and residential facilities necessary for the premier student experience for current and future generations. During Bravman’s first year as president, the University broke ground on infrastructure for Academic West, the first academic building constructed at Bucknell since 2004, which will add 70,000 square feet of classrooms, research spaces and faculty offices. Bravman also continues to strengthen the relationship between the University and downtown Lewisburg. Bucknell in fall 2010 purchased the U.S. Post Office Building, which is being renovated for University staff offices; and is updating several nearby properties, including the Campus Theatre and space for a small-business incubator.

During the earliest months of his presidency, Bravman initiated an in-depth examination of the quality of student life by establishing the Campus Climate Task Force. This group of faculty, staff and students is charged with assessment of student views and actions related to personal responsibility and, as appropriate, recommending ways to encourage the most positive University experience for students. Exploration of and campus dialogue about student responsibility and expectations will continue throughout the 2011-12 academic year.

Bravman’s first year in office included numerous meetings with alumni, parents and friends of the University, as well as many speaking engagements with Bucknell groups around the United States. In building support for the private phase of Bucknell’s $400 million comprehensive campaign, he continues to emphasize the importance of access to higher education and Bucknell’s top fundraising priority, scholarships for highly qualified students.

Born in 1957, Bravman grew up in New York City and on Long Island. He is married to Dr. Wendelin Wright, formerly Clare Boothe Luce Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Santa Clara University and now Assistant Professor of Mechanical and Chemical Engineering at Bucknell. Their son, Cole Keating Bravman, was born in 2010. Bravman, who also has two grown sons, enjoys cooking, reading, photography, travel, golf and bicycling.