About Me

I am Lloyd Armstrong, University Professor Emeritus and Provost Emeritus at the University of Southern California. I held appointments in the USC Rossier School of Education and the USC College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. My current research interest is on the research university of the future, with particular focus higher education financing and globalization, and I consult on a wide variety of issues in higher education.

I was Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs of the University of Southern California from August, 1993 until June, 2005. I chaired the drafting of the Strategic Plan for the University (1994) and of the 1998 update of the Plan. Following this Plan, the University significantly revamped its undergraduate programs, greatly encouraged and strengthened interdisciplinary research and teaching, and significantly increased its already strong emphasis on the benefits of globalization for its faculty and students. The actions called for in the 1994 strategic plan and its update have been instrumental in the dramatic improvement shown by USC over the past decade. More recently, I chaired the drafting of the 2004 Strategic Plan for the University: Building Strategic Capabilities for the University of the 21st Century.
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Prior to coming to USC, I was dean of the school of arts and sciences at the Johns Hopkins University from 1987 to 1993. I arrived at Johns Hopkins in 1969 and rose through the faculty ranks, attaining the rank of professor in 1975. I served as chair of the department of physics and astronomy from 1984-1987.

During the period 1981-1983, I took leave from Hopkins in order to serve as in the dual roles of Program Officer for Atomic, Molecular, and Plasma Physics and Program Officer for Theoretical Physics at the National Science Foundation. I later served on the NSF Advisory Committee for Physics (1985-88), and as a member of the Committee of Visitors of the Physics Division of the NSF (1991).
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I received a B.S in physics from MIT in 1962, and Ph.D. in physics from the University of California at Berkeley in 1966. Following graduation, I was a post-doctoral fellow at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (1966-67). After leaving the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, I spent two years as a Senior Physicist at the Westinghouse Research Center in Pittsburgh before going to Johns Hopkins.
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I have served on a large number of boards and committees of the National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council, including the Committee on Recommendations for the U.S.Army Basic Scientific Research (1984-87), the Committee on Atomic and Molecular Sciences (1984-89, Chair 1985-88), and the Board on Physics and Astronomy (1989-96, executive committee 1993-96). I served on the Advisory Board of the Institute for Theoretical Physics in Santa Barbara (1992-96, chair 1994-95), of the Institute for Theoretical Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics at Harvard (1994-97), and the Advisory Board of the Rochester Theory Center for Optical Science and Engineering (1996- 98, chair 1997-98).

I served on the Boards of Directors of: the Pacific Century Institute (2009-2014 ); the Pacific Council on International Policy (1996-2005); the Southern California Economic Partnership (1994-2000); and the California Council on Science and Technology (1994-2005). I was a member of the Pacific Council on International Policy (1996- 2003) and am a member of the Council on Foreign Relations (2000- ). I also serve on the advisory boards of Fidelis, Inc. (2011- ); Altius, Inc. (2010-2013 ); InsideTrack, Inc. (2006- ); Laureate, Inc. (2014-) and am a Founding Member of the Minerva Academy (2013-).