The Temple University community extends its condolences to the family of Barbara Brownstein, internationally recognized geneticist and Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Biology and Women's Studies, who died in Seattle, Washington on February 11 at the age of 79. She will be profoundly missed by all whose lives she touched and inspired.
Dr. Brownstein joined the Temple University faculty in 1968 as a member of the Department of Biology where she taught at both the undergraduate and graduate level. She quickly emerged as a leader, and became known for providing encouragement to women who were interested in pursuing careers in science. From 1982-1991 she served as the University's first Provost. In this role she established centers and increased funding for scholarship that earned Temple the prestigious designation as a Carnegie Research University.
Dr. Brownstein believed deeply in the responsibility of the university to provide students access to their culture's history and intellectual foundations. She focused on improving undergraduate education through the creation of a university-wide Core Curriculum and the establishment of the Great Teachers' Awards. Interested in broadening the horizons of Temple students, she was responsible for the development of campuses in Rome and Japan. Guided by her commitment to Temple's urban mission, she instituted programs to enhance educational and career opportunities for women and racial minorities. She also contributed to rebuilding art education and extending Temple's connections to neighborhood public high schools in Philadelphia.
When she stepped down as Provost, she returned to the faculty and continued to focus on using creative learning strategies to make science more accessible. At the same time, she while served as the first full-time director of women's studies. Following her tenure at Temple University, she spent time in Washington, D.C. working at the National Science Foundation focusing on improving science education.
A life-long resident of Philadelphia, she retired on Lopez Island, Washington, where she discovered the pleasures of a rural community. Always intent on making a contribution, she served on the Lopez School Board and on the board of directors of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Services of the San Juan Islands. Though settled on the West Coast, she remained devoted to her East Coast family and to the friendships that she had cultivated over decades.
Dr. Brownstein is survived by her sister, Linda Eskin; daughters, Dena Brownstein and Judy Kaufmann; grandchildren, Sophie Williams, Maddy Williams, Laura Kaufmann Belkhayat, and Matthew Kaufmann; and her great–grandson, Sebastien "Bash" Belkhayat.
Members of the University Community are invited to attend a memorial service on Sunday, March 13 at 2 p.m.. at Shusterman Hall on the Main Campus of Temple University.
Contributions in her memory may be made to Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Resource Services of the San Juan Islands or to the Temple University Women's Studies Program, c/o Temple University Institutional Advancement, P.O. Box 827651, Philadelphia, PA 19182-7651. Please include in the memo line "in memory of Barbara Brownstein."
Ann Weaver Hart
President