Copyright The Philadelphia Inquirer
Bette E. Landman, 88, of Glenside, Montgomery County, the first female president at Arcadia University, award-winning professor of anthropology at Arcadia and Temple Universities, longtime board member, lecturer, and volunteer, died Thursday, Oct. 16, at Jefferson Abington Hospital. The cause of her death has not been disclosed. An expert in cultural anthropology, Dr. Landman joined Arcadia, known then as Beaver College, from Temple in 1971 as an assistant professor of anthropology. She was promoted to dean of students in 1976 and rose to vice president of academic affairs and then acting president in 1982 before her appointment as president in 1985. For the next 19 years, until her retirement in 2004, Dr. Landman doubled the university’s enrollment to more than 3,000 students, increased its endowment from $267,000 to $26 million, supervised construction of seven new buildings, and expanded international study programs. She also maneuvered successfully through an eight-month maintenance staff strike in 1993 and initiated the school’s name and academic status change from Beaver College to Arcadia University in 2001. She adroitly addressed the school’s thorny financial issues, strengthened its liberal arts program and College of Global Studies, and diversified the student body. “The school has come up from the floor, and it’s because of her,” Joseph Castle 2nd, then chair of Arcadia’s board of trustees, told The Inquirer in 2004. When she retired, Arcadia colleague Gene Bucci said: “It’s a sad day. Bette is the college.” Another colleague, Norman Johnston, said: “Without her, there might not even be a college here anymore.” In a recent tribute, current Arcadia president Ajay Nair praised Dr. Landman’s “extraordinary vision and unwavering dedication to access and inclusion.” He said: “Her spirit, vision, light, and legacy will forever remain a central part of the university.” Dr. Landman studied marriage, child rearing, and other social constructs for nine months on the remote Caribbean island of Canouan for her doctoral dissertation in 1965 and ‘66, and she lectured for decades around the country on evolution and human relationships. She evaluated academic programs and advised colleges around the world, and said often that expansive educations are vital for everyday success. “A baccalaureate degree must expose men and women to arts and sciences,” she told The Inquirer in 1992. “It give breadth to what they do. I realize people work and need job skills, but the really basic skills are critical thinking, problem solving, and the ability to make judgements and effective communication, oral and written.” She was also effective in improving Arcadia’s athletic program and inducted into its Hall of Fame in 2009. She held leadership roles in the National Collegiate Athletic Association and Pennsylvania Athletic Conference, and Arcadia officials said on the Hall of Fame website: “Bette Landman put our university on the national map in athletics.” Over the years, Arcadia officials named their new Landman Library in her honor, awarded her an honorary doctorate of education, and created the Bette Landman Award for students dedicated to academic success, community service, and global learning. Before Arcadia, she was an assistant professor of anthropology for five years at Springfield College in Massachusetts and then at Temple from 1969 to 1971. She earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education and graduated first in her class of 1959 at Bowling Green State University. At Ohio State University, she earned a master’s degree in physical anthropology in 1961 and a doctorate in cultural anthropology in 1972. “She treated every student like we were part of her family,” a former student said in a tribute. “She knew us by name. All university presidents should aspire to be like Bette.” As a volunteer, Dr. Landman was president of the charitable Arcadia Foundation and chair of boards and commissions for the Association of American Colleges, the American Red Cross, and other groups. She was on boards for the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, Abington Memorial Hospital, and Wilson College. She was named a Distinguished Daughter of Pennsylvania in 1992 by the Foundation for Enhancing Communities and earned a lifetime achievement award in 2003 from the Pennsylvania Council on International Education. In 1992, the Pennsylvania chapter of the American Council on Education created an award in her name to honor a leader in women’s education in Pennsylvania. She earned a 1973 Lindback Award at Arcadia for distinguished teaching and other honors from the Boy Scouts of America, the March of Dimes, and the Philadelphia Business Journal. She also is featured in Karen Doyle Walton’s 1996 book, Against the Tide: Career Paths of Women Leaders in American and British Higher Education. She never really enjoyed fundraising, colleagues said, so she assembled a formidable staff around her. Her brother, Todd, said: “She was a tremendous team builder.” A former colleague said on Facebook: “Everyone who worked around Bette loved her.” Bette Emmeline Landman was born July 18, 1937, in Piqua, Ohio. She grew up with an older sister, Patricia, and a younger brother, Todd, and she told memorable bedtime stories to her brother when they were young. She worked odd jobs during her high school years, earned a teaching scholarship to Bowling Green, and taught fifth grade in Ohio before joining Springfield College in 1963. At Arcadia, she liked to host student gatherings at the president’s residence, and her personal library was filled with books on history, art, and architecture. Friends noted her “infectious smile” and called her “a wonderful woman” and “incredible lady.” Her brother said: “She was a very compassionate person. She was committed to success.” In addition to her brother, Dr. Landman is survived by other relatives. Her sister died earlier. Services are to be held later.
