Bradley C. Courtenay
Hall of Fame Class of 2004
Bradley C. Courtenay is recognized for his exceptional organizational and professional leadership in adult education for more than 25 years. He served as the head of the Department of Adult Education at the University of Georgia for 20 years (1981-2001) while leading two W.K. Kellogg Foundation grants. His leadership transformed the University of Georgia into a national and international leader in adult education. He also served as the director (1984-1991) of the National Center for Leadership Development in Adult and Continuing Education, a Kellogg-funded grant program. His stewardship of this project supported the addition of faculty members, the national recruitment of graduate students, and the revitalization of the curriculum to prepare leaders and scholars for adult education.
Dr. Courtenay also serves as the director of the Cyril O. Houle Scholars in Adult and Continuing Education project, a Kellogg-funded effort which began in 1997 and will continue until 2005. The purpose of the project is to identify and support emerging adult education scholars in southern Africa, Latin America and the United States. His leadership in this program has identified and worked with 45 emerging scholars and has made a lasting impact on the internationalization of continuing education.
He has made significant contributions to continuing education in research and administration of adult education, aging and gerontology, and the religious and spiritual dimensions of adult learning and education. His creativity in program development in graduate education produced 15 years of consistent growth in the student census. He provided the impetus and leadership for three new programs: the on-line Masters of Education program in adult education (the first on-line degree at the University); the Ed.D. program for leaders of Georgia’s technical colleges (in collaboration with two other departments); and the collaborative Ed.D. program with Ft. Valley State University.
Dr. Courtenay recently developed the “Spiritual Issues in Adult Education” seminar which explores a new area of research and practice in adult education. He is developing ways to incorporate on-line delivery methods into his teaching as well as providing leadership for developing a doctoral degree program in a blended format.
Dr. Courtenay’s most lasting contribution to continuing education is his work in the development of one of the most outstanding academic programs of adult education in the world. Numerous scholars have completed continuing education degree programs at the University of Georgia and combined with the 45 emerging scholars from the Houle Scholars Program, will provide the exceptional scholarship and leadership in continuing education nationally and internationally for the future.
"The whole object of education is... to develop the mind. The mind should be a thing that works."
-Sherwood Anderson