Actor Robby Benson leaving teaching post at Indiana University

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Veteran actor Robby Benson is preparing to leave Indiana University after three years as a professor of practice.

The former child star and teen idol joined what was then the schools’ telecommunications department in 2013. The university’s journalism, telecommunications and film studies programs have since bene incorporated into what’s known as The Media School.

The 60-year-old Benson tells The (Bloomington) Herald-Times that he planned to stay at the school longer but is leaving to spend more time with his family and to work on his writing. Benson is the author of two books.

He previously taught at UCLA, the University of South Carolina, the University of Utah, the California Institute for the Arts and New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

Benson has directed episodes of many TV shows, including “Friends” and “Ellen.” His film credits include “Ice Castles” and “One on One,” and he was the voice of the Beast in Disney’s animated feature “Beauty and the Beast.”