(Form for submitting questions located at bottom of page)

What is the school’s new name?
Lyles School of Civil and Construction Engineering — LSCCE for short

When does it officially happen?
Effective date: July 1, 2024

Why and how did this come about?
Initial merger discussions among the Purdue University College of Engineering, Lyles School of Civil Engineering, and the Division of Construction Engineering and Management began in 2023. The three units all agreed that there was an opportunity to better serve our students with Purdue University-Indianapolis coming online. The merger will better position us to offer new programs and opportunities at both the West Lafayette and Indianapolis campuses.

The primary goal of this merger is to gain better alignment and timing of student offerings (such as internship, co-op, and study abroad opportunities) to minimize overlap of courses, while offering pathways to timely graduation. This move will also allow us to better deploy new options and opportunities — such as certificate programs, professional concentrations — at both the graduate and undergraduate levels more effectively and efficiently.

What is the new leadership structure?

• Dr. Rao S. Govindaraju, Bowen Engineering Head of Civil Engineering and the Burke Distinguished Professor of Civil Engineering, will serve as the overall school head.
• Dr. Makarand Hastak, Dernlan Family Head of Construction Engineering and Management and Professor of Civil Engineering, will be the Dean for Facilities at Purdue University-Indianapolis.
• Hubo Cai will serve as a new Associate Head for the LSCCE. He will serve as the point person for the CNE undergraduate curriculum.
• Dr. Ayhan Irfanoglu, Professor, will continue to serve as the Associate Head of the Undergraduate Program in Civil Engineering (BSCE) and Facilities.
• Dr. Dulcy Abraham, Professor, will continue to serve as the chair of the Burke Graduate Program.

What was the reason for the name change for the combined School?
With two important undergraduate degrees being offered by the School, the name change follows Purdue CoE norms as in the case of ECE and ABE. Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Science — also housed in Hampton Hall — has multiple degree names in its title. The new name will enable us to better reflect the crucial role of the entire Civil and Construction Engineering community when developing solutions to the grand challenges faced by society from both natural and anthropogenic forces. The timely name change also leverages the opportunities that present themselves with the creation of Purdue in Indianapolis. This engagement will help us launch new Professional MS courses dealing with Smart Cities and Urban Informatics (i) to upskill the civil and construction engineering workforce on new AI methods, data science and resilience engineering (ii) to address some of the most critical and complex problems that are faced by cities, and (iii) to adopt real-world case studies from relevant programs at Purdue Engineering using Indianapolis as a living lab. Similarly, other initiatives that allow education and continuous professional development opportunities for practicing engineers along with pathways for licensure will be better reflected in this name change.

Why Construction Engineering and not Construction Engineering Management?
The management part of the curriculum will be retained to provide students with management-related content and to maintain connections with Daniels School of Business. We will continue to offer an ABET-accredited BS degree in Construction Engineering as reflected in the new name

How will the Advisory Boards function?
Thus far, both CE and CEM programs have had separate advisory boards. Given the strong commitment and legacy knowledge in the two boards, the two boards will be maintained. However, an overall Executive Advisory Board (EAB) for the Lyles School will be created consisting of members of both current board members as selected by the Head. Over time, gradually, we hope that the EAB will help create a common culture.

How will fund raising be managed?
Purdue for Life will work closely with the Head of the joint school and the Dean of CoE to understand the school's fundraising priorities.

Currently, each unit has unique distinctions and signature events. How will these be affected?
We will function as a single unit with a front that presents a united view of the overall program. At the same time, we will preserve the signature events from both programs and the sense of community that exists with both the BSCE and BSCNE programs. The School calendar will strive to combine the signature events from both programs in a unified format.

How will curriculum options for students be affected?
We will continue offering the two undergraduate degrees (BSCE and BSCNE) in the school for both existing and future students because each degree provides a unique student experience, including variations in the prescribed plan of study. Furthermore, the school is committed to actively pursuing opportunities to enhance both degree programs to elevate the teaching and learning experience.

Currently, there are courses primarily populated by students from each program. Will the merger facilitate students being able to take courses from both programs?
The school aims to enhance the versatility of courses offered with the merger while retaining the curriculum-based experiential learning delivered through BSCNE undergraduate degree.

How will student organizations be managed?
Existing student organizations within each degree program will remain intact. The merger will allow students, irrespective of degree, to explore and engage with various organizations affiliated with the school. We envision working with student leaders to study the charters/bylaws of student organizations and see if they need to be expanded for inclusivity.

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Please use the following form to submit your question(s) regarding the CE/CEM merger