Robert H. Bruininks

University of Minnesota

Biographical Abstracts

Dr. Robert H. Bruininks’s academic career has focused on transformative public and civic leadership, the development of human capital from early childhood through post-secondary education, and higher education policy. In all of his roles at the University of Minnesota (assistant professor, professor, department head, dean, executive vice president and provost, and president), Dr. Bruininks’s leadership paved the way for the University’s systemwide institutional commitment to community-engaged scholarship.

As a professor, Dr. Bruininks founded the Institute on Community Integration, a federally designated University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities. Today, the Institute is home to more than 70 research projects that partner with more than 200 community organizations in community-engaged scholarly work that addresses disability issues across the lifespan. His scholarship and leadership set a precedent for the Institute’s commitment to high-quality, reciprocal community partnerships. In 2014, he was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of University Centers on Disabilities for making a lifetime commitment to serve people with developmental disabilities and their families.