Teaching is in his DNA
John McArthur, as many of his friends say emphatically, is a teacher. “That’s his DNA,” says Boston advertising legend Jack Connors. “He wants to take his students, whoever they may be, and turn them into contributors to the community. And nobody does it better.”
“A born teacher,” confirms U.S. Energy Secretary Sam Bodman. “And one who is intensely loyal to his students.”
Curiously, due to his administrative duties, McArthur didn’t spend the thousands of hours in the classroom that many of his colleagues did. Nevertheless, in countless one-on-one sessions, he imparted valuable lessons — and especially to his junior colleagues.
Kim Clark, McArthur’s successor as Dean, often told the story about going into McArthur’s office for a career conference in the spring of 1984. Clark, then an associate professor in the Technology and Operations Management unit, laid out his intellectual agenda for the next five years. He told McArthur that he wanted to study the intersection of science and technology management with the problems of productivity and competitiveness that were then plaguing the U.S. economy. Accordingly, he continued, he wanted to lead a series of small-scale initiatives aimed at bringing these issues into the School’s intellectual mainstream.
But as he talked, Clark became aware that his audience of one was unhappy with his proposals. Finally, he asked McArthur point-blank why he looked so disappointed.
“Kim,” McArthur responded, “what you’ve come up with is acceptable, but I don’t think it’s the very best you can do. And in my experience, people around here never get anywhere unless they think big. So what I want you to do is to go away, think some more about it, and come back with your big dreams.”
