When Ravi Talwar (MSIE ’69) was eight years old, he saw a high-speed industrial clothing mill in operation. The scene sparked a curiosity for how machines and systems work and foreshadowed a lifelong career spent making them work better. After time with General Electric, Talwar became interested in entrepreneurship and made his life on a successful, intrepid career in steel.

Talwar, however, has made his mark on the School of Industrial Engineering. He shares both his time and resources with Purdue Engineering students. He and Eleanor sponsored a “Rising Star” professorship in Industrial Engineering in 2017, but they spend countless hours mentoring industrial engineering students and sharing in IE classes. 

The Ravi and Eleanor Talwar Women in Technology Scholarship extends their legacy within the School of Industrial Engineering. The scholarship celebrates and supports three sophomore women and is renewable through the remaining years of their Purdue study. This year’s honorees are Adeline Hauck from Lansing, MI, Anju Mallur from Fremont, CA, and Olivia Murchie from Batavia, IL. 

“Ravi and Eleanor have created a unique and very transformational scholarship. Again, they have stepped forward for our students and our school in a big way,” says Abhi Deshmukh, the James J. Solberg Head and Tompkins Chair of Systems. “At a steady state the scholarship will support nine students through their time in Industrial Engineering. This is an exceptional legacy they have created.”

To learn more about these and other giving opportunities, please contact the IE Development Office.

Related article: "Childhood Wonder Inspires Professional Passion", in Purdue Engineering's 2017 issue of Imprints.

(L-R): Dean Mung Chiang,  Talwar Scholars: Adeline Hauck, Anju Mallur, and Olivia Murchie, Ravi and Eleanor Talwar and Professor Abhijit Deshmukh