Andrew O. Brightman

Andrew O. Brightman is a Professor of Engineering Practice at the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering at Purdue University. With a PhD in Cell Biology and Biochemistry from Purdue, postdoctoral fellowships in Medicinal Chemistry and Cancer Biotechnology, and prior roles as Senior Research Scientist at Hillenbrand Biomedical Engineering Center, he specializes in tissue engineering, ethics pedagogy, and diversity initiatives in engineering education. His career spans 15 years of academic leadership, including curriculum development for Purdue's Professional MS BME program with a regulatory affairs concentration.

• Education
  • B.S., Botany and Plant Physiology, North Carolina State University
  • Ph.D., Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Purdue University
  • Postdoctoral Fellowships: Medicinal Chemistry (Purdue), Cancer Biotechnology (Eli Lilly)

His research interests focus on:

• Tissue Engineering: Extracellular Matrix Signaling Molecules
• Ethics Pedagogy: Reflexive Principlism (RP), Scaffolded Integrated Reflective Analysis (SIRA)
• Diversity, Equity & Inclusion: Professional Formation of Engineers
• Responsible Research: Ethical engineering of medical technologies

From 2012 onward, his publications reveal a strong emphasis on ethics education (15+ articles on SIRA, RP, and inclusive teaching) and DEI initiatives in engineering (10+ articles on diversity in STEM, pandemic impacts, and design-thinking solutions). His early work (1996-2002) focused on tissue engineering patents and extracellular matrix characterization.

• Scientific Awards
  • Outstanding Leadership Award, Purdue College of Engineering
  • Inaugural Fellow, Online Ethics Center for Engineering and Science

Brightman co-developed the Biomedical Engineering Ethics graduate course with industry partners and serves as Purdue representative for the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute's Bioethics Program. He co-directs two initiatives: the Scholarly Concentration in Biomedical Engineering (with Indiana University School of Medicine) and the Engineering Medicine Bottorff Fellows program.