Founding Dean Mike Dunn reflects on Myles Brand

I first knew Myles as a fellow philosopher. We got our Ph.D.’s in philosophy about the same time. Myles developed an excellent reputation in academic philosophy, and is largely responsible for creating the subject now well-recognized under the heading “action theory.” This is somewhat ironic since Myles then turned to administration where his actions have had huge impact on the academy (including the NCAA).

Myles’ most significant accomplishments while he was President of Indiana University (though I may be prejudiced) were the creation of the School of Informatics and the significant improvement in information technology infrastructure at IU. Informatics was the first new school established at Indiana in 28 years. It was Myles’ initial vision and continuing support that made it happen. This vision had to do with his conception some years ago that “Indiana University should become a leader, in absolute terms, in the use and application of information technology.” This was a bold vision, maybe even laughable at the time, but the strides that IU has made in this area have become legendary. I was pleased to see that Myles lived long enough to see the announcement just last week that a group of information technology researchers at Indiana University, led by Professor of Informatics and Computing Geoffrey Fox, have been chosen by the National Science Foundation to lead a four-year, $15-million project to develop new software to link together supercomputers to in effect create “super supercomputers” to solve problems that involve massive data sets. There are many others (including President McRobbie) who helped Myles shape and implement his vision for “IT@IU,” but none of this would have happened without Myles as the “prime mover” (to use a philosophical term).

I remember Myles once telling me that he wanted the artist who painted his portrait that hangs in the IMU to include in the painting not just the customary shelves of books as background, but also a notebook computer in his hands. Evidently the artist thought this was somehow inappropriate, but I disagree. It would have been cutting edge in the portraiture of university presidents, just as Myles himself was cutting edge in his university presidency.

I continue to be grateful for his faith and support in making me the founding dean of the School of Informatics. I miss him deeply.

His wife Peg and his son Joshua, who are very much in my thoughts, can take great pride in Myles’ accomplishments as a “change agent,” not just at IU, not just in the NCAA, but across academe quite generally.