IU, Purdue presidents talk future in Indianapolis
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowAfter more than half a century, Indiana University and Purdue University are going separate ways and moving forward with big plans for their respective Indianapolis campuses.
The split of the former IUPUI went into effect on July 1. Indiana University Indianapolis became a standalone campus in the IU system, while Purdue University in Indianapolis is considered an extension of Purdue’s main campus in West Lafayette.
Inside INdiana Business Host Gerry Dick sat down with the presidents of both universities to talk about what’s next.
Indiana University Indianapolis
Indiana University President Pamela Whitten describes the Indianapolis campus as an urban research university focused on a triangulation – students coming from a variety of places, faculty doing research and community partnerships.
“This campus has a great, great history. But there’s so much more we can do to both propel opportunities to train and create the workforce for the city, as well as help industry with better practices,” Whitten said.
In February, IU Indianapolis announced a partnership with Eli Lilly that will connect students with opportunities in finance, human resources and information technology. IU students participating in the program will work a semester or more at Lilly for academic credit.
“We’re also recognizing the opportunity of an urban university to really become tied to the applied health sciences. We’ve taken over the school of science now and all of the science degrees will be IU degrees,” Whitten said. “We’ve [also] grown in other areas … One of the things we started July 1 was a new computer science degree at IU. IU didn’t have a computer science department at this campus; it was Purdue’s.”
According to IU Indianapolis, nearly 90% of their four year degree recipients live and work in the state after graduating. Whitten says the university is working with other partners like the Indiana Economic Development Corporation and 16 Tech to identify current and future workforce needs.
Purdue University in Indianapolis
Purdue President Mung Chiang describes the university not as a regional campus, but a space that’s part of Purdue in West Lafayette.
“This is Purdue University itself, the main campus expanding to serve the city of Indianapolis,” Chiang said. “This is a day about Indianapolis and about Central Indiana, about creating jobs and workforce and innovation for our beloved city and all the neighbors.”
Purdue University in Indianapolis has seven sites throughout the city for students and faculty, including moving its motorsports engineering program to IndyCar manufacturing partner Dallara’s U.S. headquarters in Speedway. Other programs are expected to be located near Bottleworks in space leased by High Alpha, while others will be near 16 Tech.
“You’re going to see Boilermakers from all departments and colleges coming here to study to live and to create … it’s going to be Purdue’s full power coming to serve all of the Hoosiers in Indianapolis,” Chiang said.
Chiang says the university is in Indianapolis because of the business community and that through innovation, economic growth will help bring Indiana to the next level.
“We’re gonna take the giant leaps together with the business community in Indianapolis,” Chiang said.