From Accidental Academic to Champion for Future Scientists

When John Brett, ’78, doctor of medical anthropology and emeritus professor at the University of Colorado (CU) Denver, reflects on his years at the University of Northern Colorado (UNC), he still remembers the thrill of discovery — and the professor who made much of it possible. 

Brett’s mentor, UNC biology professor Bill Harmon, was inclusive, curious and generous with his time and had a gift for taking students under his wing and out into the world to explore.  

(left: Bill Harmon)

That mentorship changed the course of Brett’s life.  

“I hope [students] develop a really strong relationship with a faculty person,” Brett said. “My relationship with Dr. Harmon was key — [his] willingness to engage in an enthusiastic student was probably the key thing. That mentorship relationship can be really impactful and important.” 

Brett, a first-generation college student who describes himself as an “accidental academic,” grew up in a blue-collar neighborhood and admittedly barely made it through high school. He first found his footing in kitchens — washing dishes and cooking at a dude ranch outside of Gunnison and then at a retirement home in Denver — before enrolling in Arapahoe Community College and then UNC in the 1970s.  

He originally planned to study psychology to become an 8th grade school counselor — until he stepped into a classroom and realized he wasn’t quite cut out for that unique environment. He then discovered his passion in the Biology program, where small class sizes, personalized attention and encouragement from faculty like Harmon opened his eyes to a world of curiosity and hands-on field research, including extended trips to the Grand Canyon, the Baja Peninsula, Mexico and Central America.  

“UNC was smaller then, in the ’70s — and I know it’s still a value at the school,” Brett shared. “It was very hands-on, and we got a lot of personalized attention from the professors. Inclusiveness was so important — I think it’s partly what informed my approach to teaching as a university professor.”  

Ever a lover of the outdoors, Brett began his postgraduate career as the director of the community garden program at the Denver Botanic Gardens, where he met his wife, Susan Niermeyer. He then spent decades in higher education — earning his masters in anthropology at CU Denver and his doctorate in medical anthropology in the joint program in medical anthropology at the University of California (UC) Berkeley and UC San Francisco. Following his doctoral work, he was research faculty at CU Denver for seven years before receiving a regular faculty appointment in 2002. 

“Reflect on what UNC meant to you and what you’d like to see happen here. It’s not about the amount — it’s about the act of giving and the impact it can have.” — John Brett, ’78

Throughout it all, he carried the lessons of mentorship and field teaching forward, investing in students just as Harmon had invested in him.  

Now, Brett has established the inaugural undergraduate research scholarship in biological sciences: the Dr. John Brett Undergraduate Research Scholarship in Honor of Dr. Bill Harmon. Funded through a blended gift of his required minimum distribution (RMD) and an estate commitment, the scholarship supports undergraduate research with stipends, travel and project materials, giving students hands-on opportunities that can ignite and reinforce a passion for science.  

“As much as I enjoyed the depth that you can get into with graduate students, the spark of an undergraduate is something I would really like to facilitate,” Brett said. “They can get so excited when they realize [that] this is fun.”  

An avid mountaineer and lifelong explorer, Brett began hiking as a child, summited his first 14,000-foot mountain as a teenager and has since summited peaks in Colorado, Bolivia, Switzerland and France and completed many long hikes around the world. His wife Susan continues her work in educational program development for newborn health in resource-limited settings. She enjoys time gardening, exploring fiber arts and cooking after retiring from her career as a highly respected neonatologist and global health researcher at CU’s Department of Pediatrics and the Colorado School of Public Health. Together, they live simply, growing much of their own food and choosing to give generously to causes that inspire them — believing that gratitude and action go hand in hand.  

Through his gift, Brett hopes others see what’s possible when gratitude becomes action — and when one mentor’s impact echoes across generations.