The Tom Pannell I knew and worked with at Glasgow School of Art for a few years in the mid-1980s was a gentleman. Following Tony Jones as director of Glasgow School of Art in 1986 was difficult enough, but doing so when the forces of darkness were gathering and the menace of managerialism was about to spread to higher education made his period in office less than fulfilling.

Tom was a graduate of the Royal College of Art, specialising in textile design and,

typically, was also interested in fashion.

He worked for the distinguished Scottish firm of Reid and Taylor for about five years, leaving in 1965 to become head of fashion/textiles at the Nottingham College of Art and Design.This was when the UK still maintained a reasonable spread of independent, relatively small specialist art schools.

He was an accomplished musician, being the owner of a splendid piano.

The Council of National Academic Awards had been established in 1964 and would assume the English National Council for Diplomas in Art and Design in 1974 and see the growth of the Polytechnics in the late 1970s.

Tom had become principal of the London School of Fashion in 1973 and with his affability, experience, and genuine concern for education, became a valued and respected member of CNAA visiting parties, sent out to schools and colleges to validate and revalidate their courses in art and design.

It was in this way that we came to know him at Glasgow School of Art, particularly with regard to the late Bob Stewart's novel MA in design which, like many of our ideas and traditions, did not conform administratively to the way things were, or were being organised, down south.

Tom dealt with the issues sensitively and with insight, maintaining the integrity of our proposals while satisfying the needs of the council.

It can be said in retrospect that this sort of approach typified many of the senior people involved with CNAA at the time and greatly helped to ''sell'' it and the notion of degree courses in art and design to a sceptical, if not hostile constituency.

We might have complained endlessly about the need to write up what we sought to do and even what we did, but it was nothing compared to what was to come.

The age of ''aims'' and ''objectives'' and ''five-year plans'' was about to dawn - the whole ghastly, largely unnecessary paraphenalia of the corporate world was on its way.

It was not for Tom, and on the issue of his becoming ''accounting officer'' with the possible, if unlikely prospect of having to ''clype'' on the governors, he resigned in 1989, eventually retiring to Taunton.

Thomas Bentley Pannell, educationist; born July 5, 1933, died June 22, 2003.