John O’Brien

John O’Brien serves as the president and CEO of EDUCAUSE, a nonprofit organization seeking to inspire the transformation of higher education in service to a greater good. EDUCAUSE serves over 2,000 member colleges, universities, and organizations from 41 countries who themselves collectively serve over 14 million students.

He speaks and writes on a variety of topics related to higher education, technology, and the crucial intersection where the two meet. Throughout his career in higher education, O’Brien has served as an academic, technology, and institutional leader. He has been a college provost and president in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system, the fourth-largest higher education system in the United States. Immediately prior to his appointment at EDUCAUSE, he served as the system’s senior vice chancellor of academic and student affairs.

O’Brien holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Augustana University (SD), a master’s degree in Anglo-Irish literature from Trinity College Dublin, and a doctorate in English from the University of Minnesota.