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Summer 2003

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Alumnus Comes Home as Dean
Irene Burgo

From his third-floor office in the Center for Engineering Education and Research, Barry C. Johnson '70, the new dean of the College of Engineering, greets faculty, staff and students with warm enthusiasm and energy.  It's no surprise that his confident, easygoing manner belie a man who is entirely at home on campus. In accepting the position, Johnson literally has come home--both professionally and personally. He has returned to his alma mater and to his native Philadelphia.

Dr. Johnson, who graduated from Villanova with a mechanical engineering major, officially assumed the position of dean of the College of Engineering on August 1, as announced by the Rev. Edmund J. Dobbin, O.S.A. '58, University president.  Johnson says that it was natural for him to want to do make the switch from industry to academe at this point in his life.  He had had a successful career in industry for more than 20 years.  Before that he taught at the college level and enjoyed the experience immensely. Now, he says he is now doing what he most enjoys and is looking forward to his new academic life.

Johnson comes to Villanova from Honeywell International in Morristown, N.J., where he was senior vice president and chief technology officer for the past two years.  There he was responsible for setting the strategic direction and priorities for Honeywell's technology organizations, which comprised a global network of more than 15,000 engineers, scientists and researchers.

The native Philadelphian has spent most of his career in the industrial sector, including positions at Motorola Semiconductor Products Sector and E.I. Du Pont de Nemours & Co.  Early on, he was as a tenured professor who taught in the department of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Arizona.  His love of teaching and the respect for field of education are what persuaded him to return to the College of Engineering.

He credits Villanova with charting the direction for his career. "Villanova has had a tremendous impact on my life," said Dr. Johnson. "It broadened my horizons and showed me how to grow immensely as a human being in understanding who I am, what I could do, couldn't do, and what I wanted to do. I owe much to the education that I received here." When offered the dean's position, Johnson saw an opportunity to give something back to his alma mater. "I had reached the point where I was looking for a greater challenge, for an opportunity to make a fundamental impact and achieve a higher purpose in my work. Education has always been on top of my list and that's why I decided to accept the position."

His is no ordinary success story. Johnson attended Villanova on a Martin de Porres scholarship.  He was the first of six siblings to attend college but the experience unfortunately was short-lived.  He had to drop out of Villanova in the middle of his sophomore year to support his family when his mother became ill and "needed an operation." He got a job, was drafted into the military service and served in the Marine Corps.  Although he eventually completed his undergraduate degree in 1970 after taking evening courses in the University College, it was a much more difficult path he had taken to become an engineer.

Johnson credits his mother as being "the biggest influence in my life.  She taught me the most important quality was 'humility.' If it weren't for her, I wouldn't be where I am."

The dean praises his Villanova teachers for inspiring and motivating him while he attended courses at night. "Dr. Edward McAssey '56, had a tremendous influence on me," the dean recalled. "He was such a good teacher and he captured my imagination. In fact, that's why I went to the University of Arizona to teach. I always remembered the influence professors had on me."

After graduation from Villanova, he earned a master's and doctorate in metallurgical engineering and material science from Carnegie Mellon University. At Carnegie Mellon where he joined scholars trained in Ivy League and other prestigious universities, he says his Villanova education prepared him well enough to compete with them.

Johnson said he probably would have remained a professor at the University of Arizona had not serendipity again stepped in.  He accepted a position with Du Pont in Delaware so that he could be located closer to his family and aging mother whose health was failing.  At DuPont, he began as a senior fellow in Central Research and Development, investigating the electronic applications of high temperature superconductors and later led a fundamental research organization in the electronic materials department.  After three years, his mother's health improved and he was offered an exciting opportunity at Motorola in Phoenix, Arizona.

At Motorola, the Villanova alumnus rose quickly through the ranks of the Semiconductor Products Sector, where the company was developing products like the Power PC that were really taking off.  "This was a new, exploding field and I became a specialist in integrated circuit processing and packaging."  He held several high level positions within the sector, eventually being promoted to corporate vice president and chief technology officer.  "In this position, I had developed certain techniques for technology road-mapping that could be integrated within the business planning process that improved the new product development process," he said.  Then Honeywell came knocking on his door.  "They wanted someone who was very good at plotting strategic direction and exploiting technology development to deliver leading edge products faster."

Johnson announces reorganization of the College

The dean's plans for the College of Engineering include the recently announced  reorganization of the structure of College, including the formation of three associate dean positions and  two advisory groups. The College of Engineering Leadership Council will have a membership consisting of staff, department chairs, research center directors and endowed chair holders who will be responsible for charting the College's strategic direction. The Dean's Advisory Board, comprised of top technologists and corporate officers and academicians, will offer advice, provide benchmark information and audit the progress of the college as it moves toward its strategic goals. He hopes to raise the level of engineering education by implementing a system of outcomes assessment based on a standard of performance excellence, which encourages working toward continuous improvement.   "We will identify our College's strengths and weaknesses, and continually improve both."

Johnson outlined his plans for engineering education. "The learning experience is important. We want to turn out the best bachelor's and master's graduates that we can, who are skilled in their profession, who can compete successfully in life after Villanova," he said.  "So, we will assess the quality of our graduates leaving. While they are students, we want to give them the best learning experience possible, not just in engineering, but you want students to grow and mature as good human beings with integrity. We want graduates who will not only be able to compete well within their disciplines, but who are adults in the true sense--intellectually, emotionally and spiritually.  We want engineering graduates who possess a strong sense of right and wrong. That's why he believes in outcomes.

'The College of Engineering has great potential," he said. "As one of its leaders, I want to effectively exploit that potential to turn out the best graduates possible.  The Leadership Council will help us set a compelling vision of where we want to go and what resources we have to develop to get us there. Villanova has a lot of substance, but we can do a better job."

By year end, Johnson hopes to implement a strategic plan which he is developing.  "We have to set a compelling vision of where we want to go, and we've got to develop the resources to get us there," he said. The Dean's Advisory Board will provide feedback from an important view of how Villanova is perceived by people off campus."

Meanwhile, the dean named some key issues he will focus upon improving through an outcomes assessment methodology, including: assessing and improving the undergraduate and graduate curricula; exploring  five-year BS/MS degree programs, as well as distance learning. Other issues include improving the research infrastructure, developing an external communications plan and corporate relations program; enhancing student services including tutoring and mentoring programs, as well as career services and counseling programs.

He hopes engineering graduates will absorb lasting values as much as engineering skills. "Engineering and science in general is a search for the truth, so when you consider the Augustinian values and look at life after Villanova, we want them to model those values. We want our graduates to be the best they can be, who as they go out into the world and do what they need to do, are aware of the impact their deeds have on humankind."                  

If we want that for our students, then the administration, faculty and I should model those behaviors. I take it personally. If I want students to believe in lifelong learning, I should model it. In doing so, I'm looking around and asking where I and we can improve"            

How have engineering changes affected education since he was a student? Is engineering more demanding, harder today?  "I don't think it's intellectually harder from the standpoint of problem solving, but there is definitely more to learn. Technologies are evolving so rapidly that the amount of knowledge is expanding exponentially.  Education can't stay ahead of the technology innovation curve. Therefore, we must insure that our  students are well grounded in the scientific fundamentals of their disciplines and analogs in order to provide the intellectual flexibility to adapt to these exploding changes."          

He could have remained at Motorola or Honeywell, but Johnson is happy to be at Villanova where he can help shape the future of the Engineering College. "Your horizons should never be set using the amount of money you can earn as the greatest lure.  It may sound funny, but I've always thought that if you become successful, you should give something back."         

How does he feel about the transition from corporate executive to academic world? "Intellectually, it hasn't been hard.  Emotionally, it's a different story.  I grew up 'dirt poor'. When I first came to Villanova as a student, I'd never aspired nor thought in my wildest imagination that I would come back to the school as dean and reside in the area.  To come home now--even though it's changed--to be able to do that-touches you  emotionally."           

Johnson is the recipient of numerous honors including the Villanova's Professional Achievement Award, the National Black Engineer of the Year Award Villanova's J. Stanley Morehouse Award, as well as election to the National Academy of Engineering.=           

He and his wife, Katherine, reside in Bryn Mawr.  He is the father of two children, Jacqueline and Matthew.