Dear Alumni and Friends,

Recently you received a postcard regarding the 50^th Anniversary Celebration of the School of Nuclear Engineering at Purdue. Due to an unavoidable conflict of schedules, we have had to alter our plans and have cancelled the formal weekend event.

Instead, we are planning a yearlong celebration to honor our past, share the excitement of Nuclear Engineering at Purdue today, and look toward tomorrow.

As the legendary birthplace of the nuclear unit Purdue has been at the center of nuclear engineering research and education for the past 50 years. Home to participants in the Manhattan Project, and location of the only nuclear reactor in the state of Indiana (PUR-1), Purdue’s School of Nuclear Engineering continues to rank among the top 10 undergraduate and top 12 graduate programs in the country.

The next 50 years will lead to more adventures and outstanding breakthroughs. Today, I want to share with you just a few of the areas of excellence of your alma mater:

• We have significantly increased and diversified our research grants
• We are now among the highest in research dollars per faculty in the College of Engineering
• We also have the highest number of research faculty in the College of Engineering
• We are now recognized as a key focal point in US and World fusion reactor design.
• Our new student population has grown by more than 33% for this coming year

I am very excited about the year ahead and look forward to sharing our celebration with you. Please check our website regularly and watch for further news and announcements throughout the year. If you plan to attend Homecoming on Saturday, October 16, stop by our table and say hello. Please let us know if you plan to be on campus any time during the year. I would be glad to arrange a campus tour and discuss our progress with you.

Go Boilers!

Ahmed Hassanein
Paul L. Wattelet Professor and Head of Nuclear Engineering