John Lawson
The Board of Directors of the NorthWest Academic Computing Consortium is pleased to announce that Dr. John Lawson, Vice Provost for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer at Western Washington University, has been chosen to receive the NWACC Leadership Award. The award is given to John in recognition of his contributions to NWACC and his exceptional leadership in advancing the use of technology in higher education.
John holds a doctorate (computer science, 1985), two master’s degrees (geography and computer science, 1983) a bachelor’s degree (geography, 1982), all from the University of Oregon. Although John hails from the Pacific Northwest, during his career he has led information technology organizations at Towson University, Pepperdine University, and Tulane University. During his tenure at Tulane he successfully coordinated IT recovery operations in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
Since joining the NWACC Council in 2006, John has offered valuable counsel and support to his fellow CIOs. As a two-term member of the NWACC Board of Directors, John has helped shape NWACC’s programs, policies, and culture. The Hugi Leadership Award recognizes John’s gift for collaborating with others and for his deep understanding of the benefits that technology can have in a university setting.