Brandl, Minnesota's St. John's University undergrad and Harvard doctorate, served in government positions at the state and federal level, as well as a professor and dean.

He served the University of Minnesota in one function or another from 1968 to 2007 . First as an associate professor and director of the School of Public Affairs, and later as the dean at the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs from 1997 to 2002 .

Other than the University of Minnesota, Brandl held faculty positions at Harvard, St. John's University in Minnesota, University of Wisconsin, the University of Philippines and the Sydney University.

In the public sphere, Brandl represented the people of Minneapolis both in the Minnesota House from 1977-78 and 1986-87 and in the Minnesota Senate from 1987-90.

Brandl also served at the federal level during Lyndon Johnson's term. He held positions in the U.S. Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Office of Economic Opportunity, the Economic Development Administration, and the Department of Health, Education and Welfare.

Dan Whalen, Brandl's former student and friend, created a John Brandl scholarship for political policy research at the St. John's University.

At a Jun. 30 University banquet honoring Brandl, Whalen said that Brandl taught him to look at politics logically, that "perfection is the enemy of the good."

"Go where the greatest benefit leads you," Whalen said quoting Brandl, "and always do the right thing."