Leonard Lee Bartlett
From College of Fine Arts and Communications
Contents |
Overview
Leonard (known by his middle name, Lee) Bartlett's connection to BYU and the Department of Communications dates back to the 1950s, when he took an Introduction to Advertising course taught by Raymond E. Beckham, who was then serving as a part-time instructor.
Career
While Bartlett graduated with a BA in Art in 1957, his connection with Beckham, future Associate Dean of the College of Fine Arts and Communications, persisted as his advertising career flourished during two years as a corporate adverting manager and eight years as an advertising agency account group manager in Chicago. That was followed by twenty years with a Seattle advertising agency, where he advanced to executive vice president, then vice chairman. From time to time during the 1980s Bartlett was invited by Dr. Beckham to visit BYU and give presentations to assembled communications students. On one occasion Bartlett was able to assist Dr. Beckham in establishing the department's New York Internship Program during the 1970s by helping him secure internships with Ogilvy & Mather, one of the world's premier advertising agencies.
Service at BYU
When Bartlett retired after thirty years in advertising, Dr. Beckham was instrumental in arranging a year-to-year position in the department's Advertising Sequence. Lee was named advertising sequence leader during his first year on the faculty. Bartlett, who referred to himself as "The Accidental Chair," became chair of the Communications Department when David P. Forsyth resigned following an heart attack in November 1995.
Bartlett was the first department chair with an advertising background. Additionally, he was a rarity in that he did not have a Ph.D. Bartlett did however have an extensive professional history -- he had worked in the advertising field for thirty years before joining BYU in 1987.
Bartlett concurrently taught and attended school, receiving his master's of Art History in 1989. After completing his degree, Bartlett was given a full-time position as an advertising faculty member. He served in that position until his appointment as department chair.
His term as chair was brief, lasting from November 1995 until January 1997 (Pratte, 36). It is worth noting that that during that year Bartlett's principal, and nearly all-consuming duty was to direct the department's reaccreditation by the AEJMC—Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. The accreditation effort was successful.
Bartlett's Department of Communications assignment ended when he was invited by BYU President Merrill J. Bateman early in 1997 to join the President's Council as Assistant to the President, University Communications—the role of "javelin catcher" as Bartlett characterized it.
Community Service
Bartlett has been actively involved in the Provo community. He participated in the effort to save Academy Square and served on the Provo Library Construction Oversight Committee and is currently serving as the chair of the Provo Arts Council.
Additionally, Bartlett has filled various Church public affairs assignments and has been a tutor for Project Read.
In 2009, the Covey Center held an exhibition of Bartlett’s art work.
News Links
References
- Somewhere Between Mount Olympus and Mount Everest, Paul Alfred Pratte, 2003.
