Strategic Plan: 2024–2029

updated January 30, 2025

School of Mechanical Engineering
Purdue University
West Lafayette, Indiana

Executive Summary

The School of Mechanical Engineering (ME) at Purdue University offers stellar academic programs within the framework of the globally acclaimed College of Engineering.  With its superior reputation, the College has been ranked among the very best in the nation and the world. Likewise, the School of ME also has been consistently ranked among the top ten in the nation for the last three decades.

This strategic plan is a living document.  It guides the School of ME’s steadfast assurance to moving forward and embrace change.  To rise to the next level, the School of ME expresses its overarching commitment to a culture of collaboration and interdisciplinary endeavors.  This culture is pervasive throughout ME as it enhances its relationship with other disciplines, institutions, and key stakeholders in industry, government and society.

This strategic plan is recognized as a roadmap for the next five years that remains harmoniously responsive to the dynamic landscapes, contexts, and forces influencing the School of ME’s continued growth and development in keeping with its reputation. Regular alignments of the strategic initiatives and their timelines will be implemented on an annual basis with major imperatives driven by the dynamic nature of the world of mechanical engineering education and practice.

Our Vision (Where we want to go!)

Leading the World in Mechanical Engineering Education, Research, and Engagement through our Interdisciplinary and Collaborative Culture

Our Mission (What we must do!)

Changing the world for the better, one student at a time.

Our Core Values (Who we are!)

  1. Persistently pursue excellence: ME faculty, staff and students are forward-thinking, determined, rigorous, and driven.  We go above and beyond the regular call of duty and exhibit excellence in all that we do.  We continuously improve and strive for innovation in our research, educational, and professional endeavors, and our outcomes are second to none.
  1. Act with integrity and compassion: ME faculty, staff and students are ethical, honest, and kind above all else.  We do things the right way without compromise.  We are reliable and true, and we do what we say while reflecting the highest standards.
  1. Collaborate within and outside Mechanical Engineering: ME faculty, staff and students actively listen, communicate, and work together. We are eager to break down institutional silos.  We create and value relationships that change the world for the better.
  1. Foster a diverse, inclusive, and respectful environment: ME faculty, staff and students are empathetic, positive, encouraging, and treat others well.  We respect ALL voices and firmly acknowledge that everyone’s contributions matter.  We value diverse backgrounds and perspectives, and strongly support people from all backgrounds.
  1. Provide service to all: ME faculty, staff and students are empathetic, positive, encouraging, and treat others well.  We respect ALL voices and firmly acknowledge that everyone’s contributions matter.  We value diverse backgrounds and perspectives.  We strongly support people from all backgrounds.

Our Goals (How we get there!)

  1. Deliver World-Leading Undergraduate and Graduate ME Learning Experiences.
  1. Pursue Innovative Research in Target Areas Producing High-Impact, High-Profile Results of Significance for Industry, Government, and Society.
  1. Foster a Culture to Recruit, Develop, and Retain the Best Faculty and Staff.
  1. Grow Our Unique Educational and Research Infrastructure and Facilities.

Goal 1: Deliver World-Leading Undergraduate and Graduate ME Learning Experiences.
(What is the required knowledge for ME students, and what are the best ways for them to acquire this?)

Strategic Initiatives:

1a. Deliver World-Leading Undergraduate ME Learning Experiences

  • Conduct Internal Review of Undergraduate ME Curriculum
    • Develop action items and implementation plan
  • Fully establish ME undergraduate program in Indianapolis
  • Review and finalizing Motorsports Engineering program
    • Create appropriate interactions between MSPE and ME
  • Pursue double majors and minors
    • Daniels School of Business
    • Computer Science
    • Liberal Arts
  • Offer concentrations within ME:
    • Use technical elective courses to offer concentration/specialization
    • Application oriented, e.g., sustainable energy engineering
    • Academic area oriented, e.g., thermal sciences
  • Offer cross-disciplinary certificate programs:
    • Food Science, Agriculture:
    • e.g., harvest, storage, transport and preparation of food
  • Collaborate with other engineering disciplines:
    • ECE --> e.g., energy distribution or utilities
    • CIVL --> e.g., architectural or environmental engineering
  • Evaluate instructional laboratories
    • Update existing labs, include virtual labs
  • Strongly participate in programs for strong students
    • Provide unique work and research experiences at national/international top-tier industries and laboratories for our leaders of tomorrow.
    • Implement “Do More in Four” program and engage in Honors program
  • Experiential Learning Activities
    • Develop stronger programs to prepare our students for graduate school
    • In pursuit of 100% GRIT
    • EPICS, VIP, Student Competition Clubs
    • Allow for more variable capstone design, e.g., collaborate with other disciplines, offer divisions based on concentrations/specializations
    • More industry projects as part of senior design
  • Create studio facilities for students’ creative pursuits providing active learning spaces, design and fabrication facilities, and people resources.
  • Enhance undergraduate classroom experiences, new modes of content delivery, new paradigms for textbooks, and new models for laboratory experiences.
  • Right-size the resources needed to support our undergraduate enrollment
  • Recruit a Diverse Undergraduate Student Body
    • Build partnerships with appropriate communities
      • Large African American churches
      • Hispanic American community centers
      • High schools in Indianapolis
    • Support appropriate programs, such as WIEP & MEP, LGBT
  • Engage with local schools
    • FIRST Robotics
    • Science fairs
    • High school motorsports

1b. Deliver World-Leading Graduate ME Learning Experiences

  • Conduct Internal Review of Graduate ME Curriculum and make appropriate adjustments, including
    • Graduate student stipends, Course offerings, Area exams
    • Policies and procedures
    • TA Policy
    • Consider Ph.D. research or teaching exchange programs
    • Help College to develop professional doctoral degree program
    • Consider advancing graduate classroom experiences—more effective engagement within classroom, laboratory, and design environments, creation of hardware and software—connecting to global grand challenges.
    • Consider international degrees with partner universities; use as a recruiting tool
    • Consider alumni-connected programs for graduate student internships and other professional experiences.
  • Fully establish ME graduate program in Indianapolis
  • Support Faculty Mentorship Development
    • Further develop orientation materials for new faculty
    • Pursue training of faculty on graduate student mentoring and advising
  • Build community among graduate students
    • Include senior PhD students in school decision making opportunities
    • Establish graduate student council that represents the various research locations
    • Consider efforts by research location such as coffee breaks, celebration of cultures, and cross-disciplinary seminars
  • Improve online MS degree program
    • Grow online course offerings
  • Further grow Professional MS Programs
    • Develop additional professional components
    • Develop PMP in Motorsports Engineering
    • Pursue appropriate marketing
  • Promote idea of hosting exchange students in private homes
  • Participate in student competitions
  • Contribute to the education of future generations of mechanical engineers by engaging graduate students preparing them for educational careers.

Goal 2:  Pursue Innovative Research in Target Areas Producing High-Impact, High-Profile Results of Significance for Industry, Government, and Society.
(What are the big research questions and how do we tackle them?)

Strategic Initiatives:

  • Carefully evaluate ME research strengths and build on them to pursue topics where ME can have high impact
  • Align ME research strengths with College of Engineering initiatives
    • Initiative in Data Applications
      • Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning
    • Initiative in Autonomous and Connected Systems
      • Transportation
    • Initiative in Innovation and Making
      • Semiconductor manufacturing
      • Manufacturing in Space
      • Food manufacturing
    • Initiative in Engineering Medicine
      • Drug delivery, medical treatment/surgery devices
    • Initiative in Energy Transition
      • Energy storage/batteries, hydrogen energy (electrolyzer, fuel cells)
  • Step back and identify cross-disciplinary collaborations
    • Formalize research committee
      • Identify research groups based on faculty interest
    • Break down silos
      • Build “faculty discovery groups” with other disciplines
  • Provide seed funding for cross-disciplinary collaborations to initiate and develop academic communities that ultimately lead to major centers of scholarly endeavor
    • Need to develop appropriate resources
  • Foster the development of cross-disciplinary proposals through academic incentives
    • Sabbaticals
    • Release of teaching and service
  • Facilitate ‘disruptive’ basic research, encourage and support risk-embracing and bold research focusing on tangible outcomes with societal impact.
  • Promote and embrace large-scale interdisciplinary and collaborative research and design, including national and international collaborations along with faculty and student exchanges.
  • Actively and systematically engage government agencies and funding organizations with the objective of influencing their vision roadmap and policy decisions.
  • Promote, recognize, and reward scholarly excellence and far-reaching broader dissemination of research products.
  • Educate faculty on generation, protection, and translation of intellectual property (IP), and encourage increased IP generation by duly rewarding patents granted, and licensing of patents.
  • Participate in funding panels of governmental agencies, encouraging and mentoring junior faculty about strategic selection of panels, attending SBIR panels, and interacting with program managers.
  • Promote colleagues through nominations for major awards with national and international recognition including society fellows, discipline-based awards, and memberships to very high-profile organizations such as the National Academy of Engineering (NAE).
  • Translation of intellectual property (IP) into leading industrial products, facilitating economic development.

Goal 3:  Foster a Culture to Recruit, Develop, and Retain the Best Faculty and Staff.
(How to attract and retain a diverse group of faculty and staff that reflects the demographics of our community?  How do we best promote and advance a welcoming environment where all faculty and staff can excel?)

Strategic Initiatives:

3a. Actively Recruit, Develop, and Retain the Best Faculty

  • Remind faculty about the Movable Dream Hires program and request their input.
  • Support for faculty in search committees (time release?).
  • Continuously improve administrative support with training (success factors recruitment tool) and feedback from search committees.
  • Effort needs to be shared by all
  • Select a diverse search committee
  • Build communities
    • Team with other disciplines at Purdue to attract a critical mass of underrepresented and diverse faculty
  • Build strategic partnerships
  • Increase ME’s Global Footprint
    • Continue to create international experiences for faculty
      • Further increase already existing collaborations
      • Develop new collaborations, as necessary
    • Formalize available financial support and incentives
      • Sabbatical leaves versus change in work locations
      • Summer teaching assignments
  • Foster a welcoming environment where all faculty can excel
    • Faculty Mentoring
      • Discuss Faculty Mentorship programs and promotion among different areas to improve different approaches
      • Create mentorship programs for lecturers, PEP, and research professors
    • Faculty Communication
      • Information for Faculty shared in monthly faculty meetings
      • Inform faculty about recognition and awards in ME (Discovery in ME, Spira, Excel)
    • Faculty Recognitions
      • Actively forward strong cases to the Dean’s office for University & External awards
      • Increase the number of named professors
  • Engagement Initiatives
    • Encourage faculty to host conferences and other tech transfer activities (short courses, workshops)
      • Provide ME conference secretariat
      • Use Purdue resources such as https://www.purdue.edu/conferences/
    • Conduct service-learning projects in the community
  • Develop Appropriate Faculty Incentives
    • Recognition for promotion and tenure for faculty to participate in, lead and create global programs & engagement activities
    • Expand the faculty path to include global education (teaching, research, service/engagement, global education)
    • Participation in global programs counts toward teaching load
    • Prioritize global programs that help to recruit international underrepresented groups
    • Financial and other rewards
    • Plug-n-play leadership opportunities
  • Use University resources to educate our faculty, staff, and recruits on DEI (race, gender, religion)
    • Safe Zone training (LGBTQ center)
  • Actively pursue private fund-raising efforts in concert with the College of Engineering to support learning, discovery, and engagement programs and initiatives.

3b. Actively Recruit, Develop, and Retain the Best Staff

  • Provide Staff Mentorship:
    • Trained mentors matched to new staff and also provided to current staff as desired
    • Leverage 6-month mentorship program with topics provided by HR
  • Encourage Staff Professional Development:
    • Encourage active participation in internal & external organizations such as PACADA, NACE, ASEE, and many more
    • Encourage annual participation in at least one Professional Development Conference/Training for all staff members
    • ME participants in Purdue Engineering Staff Leadership Academy (PESLA) cohorts
  • Encourage Staff Continuing Education:
    • Encourage Purdue Global degrees, certifications, courses
    • Encourage Purdue online and in-person degrees, certifications, courses
  • Maintain Strong Staff Recognition Programs:
    • Mechanical Engineering:
      • $10 gift card recognitions
      • ME Mission & Values awards
      • ME Awards of Excellence
      • Promotions within positions and to new positions
    • College of Engineering: Staff Awards of Excellence
    • University: Bravo+ and non-recurring recognition and reward pool
  • Staff Incentives and Engagement:
    • Provide funding for professional development for all interested staff members annually
    • Provide flexibility in work hours and locations
    • Leverage a mix of hybrid, remote, in-person options for staff
    • Consider FY vs. AY appointments where appropriate
    • Expand opportunities for staff to participate in study abroad programs
    • Expand university and industry partnerships
    • Develop additional programs capable of leadership rotations
    • Staff-Faculty relationships
    • Clearly define the role and duties of administrative assistants
    • Build a channel for communication and constructive feedback between faculty and staff
    • Create staff sabbaticals/exchanges
    • Create exchange opportunities in other departments or schools for cross training, network expansion, knowledge and skills growth, career opportunities, and variety
    • Consider staff sabbaticals at partner universities where possible
    • Provide a wide range of opportunities to foster engagement across staff, faculty, and students, including service opportunities in the community

Goal 4:  Grow Our Unique Educational and Research Infrastructure and Facilities.
(Which physical or virtual environments are critical to accomplish research, education and culture goals?)

Strategic Initiatives

  • Expand utilization of and access to physical facilities to promote formal and informal faculty, staff, and student interactions to catalyze interdisciplinary and collaborative initiatives.
  • Carefully evaluate available space for ME educational, research and engagement activities and develop a plan of what else is needed.
    • Use space wisely
    • Renovate space as needed
    • Special focus on space at Purdue in Indianapolis
  • Work with College of Engineering to complete fundraising for major projects
    • Herrick Labs 3.0
    • Zucrow Labs ZL2
    • MMRL
    • Further renovation of ME Building
  • Identify what else is available on campus or may be needed
    • Cross-Disciplinary Design Learning Center for Student Competition Labs
      • Integrate engineering fundamentals with physical intuition
      • Develop multi-disciplinary competency
      • Culture of innovation and entrepreneurship is difficult to teach in conventional courses
  • Embrace “where the physical meets the virtual world”
    • Pursue virtual labs to lessen student enrollment pressure
  • Invest in truly unique research spaces
    • E.g., DC Nano-Grid House
  • Cross-Cultural Learning and Living Community
    • Introduce language, culture & history exchange
    • Strengthen two-way experiences
    • Prioritize partner countries/institutions
    • Use residence halls as a start for students
    • Rent ME apartments for short-term faculty and staff visitors
    • Eventually build an “International House”