Dean's Message: September 2017

Dear Purdue Engineering Community:

When the new academic year started two weeks ago, we welcomed almost 2,000 freshmen to our College. I also started “taking classes” by sitting in on a few of the vast course offerings by our schools and divisions. The combination of rigor and scale in Purdue Engineering’s curriculum is unparalleled anywhere.

The span of our buildings is also remarkable. In my walking tours, I have seen the sharable, visible and flexible space in Grissom, Martin Jischke, and Wang halls, and the breathtaking scope of Bowen and Herrick Labs. I have marveled at the new buildings to be unveiled soon: Bechtel Innovation Design Center (BIDC, jointly with the Polytechnic Institute), Zucrow Labs expansion, and the FlexLab. For example, BIDC is located right on the Student Success Corridor, featuring creative space for the imaginative minds of innovators in engineering and beyond.

Purdue Engineering also welcomes many visitors in the autumn season. The student-run Industrial Roundtable will bring more than 400 companies to campus Sept. 11-13. The Big Ten+ Graduate School Expo will see 350 aspiring graduate students from 125 universities congregate here Sept. 24-25. Homecoming weekend will be an exciting highlight with the Engineering Homecoming Dinner on Sept. 22 and Purdue vs. Michigan football in Ross-Ade Stadium the next day!

In my individual meetings with Engineering faculty and open-door conversations with students and staff, I am getting an ever-increasing appreciation of the proud heritage and future possibilities of Purdue Engineering. I am looking forward to a conversation with you at the "Engineering Town-Hall Meeting" at 1 p.m. on the 18th of this month in Fowler Hall of Stewart Center.

Boiler up!

Mung
John A. Edwardson Dean of the College of Engineering