The road to a college presidency can take many routes. For Janice Cervelli (A’79), an early turn came through meeting famed Purdue professor Harrison Flint. “He was a leader in the Department of Horticulture, and he was not only terrific as an instructor but as a teacher of teachers,” she says. “I was a teaching […]
The tuba is known as the foundation of bands and orchestras, and for over a decade, Purdue has held an annual concert dedicated to the jumbo musical instrument. An international tradition envisioned by musician and tuba enthusiast Harvey Phillips, known to many as Mr. Tuba, TubaChristmas began in New York City in 1974. Phillips wanted […]
Researcher aims to help parents support their children in sports Growing up, Travis Dorsch played football, basketball, baseball, and soccer. And he ran track. In college, he was an All-America kicker for Purdue’s football team, setting him up to play a few years in the NFL. In adulthood, he’s taken up competing in Ironman triathlons. […]
Traveling across rocky seas — without family — from China to San Francisco’s Angel Island in 1926, Frank Chuck Toy (CE’39), then 12, began designing his future. Now 101, he credits Purdue for his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, recommendation to Pennsylvania State University, where he earned his master’s, and referrals to Boilermaker alumni who […]
Bright innovations in alternative and sustainable energy that could impact the world In 2015, only 10 percent of America’s energy consumption came from renewable energy sources like wind, solar, and hydropower and less than a quarter of electricity generation came from renewable energy sources, according to the US Energy Information Administration. This represents a significant […]
It took a few years for destiny to find Sally Ann Zoll (LA’72). When it did, she recognized it immediately. In 2003, Zoll’s son, Cory Henry (A’96), a US Army reservist with an 18-month-old son of his own, was called to active duty for the Iraq invasion. It was, she remembers, “just a horrible, crazy […]
Mother’s poignant words led Frank Brown to the Pinnacle Frank Brown’s mother was illiterate. As an African American woman who lived in the first half of the 20th century, Amanda Brown was not afforded an education. “She couldn’t read, but I didn’t know this,” Brown (PhD S’69) says. “She critiqued and praised my schoolwork. She […]
From the mid-1910s until 1969, Purdue faculty, staff, students, and visitors had the chance to stop by the Purdue University Creamery on campus, where they could purchase fresh ice cream. The creamery was housed in Smith Hall after a gift of $50,000 from William C. Smith, a farmer from Williamsport, Indiana, to fund a building […]
Disagreeing without being disagreeable in election season In ancient Greece, Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics asserted that people were, by nature, political animals. Engagement in the political process was viewed as necessary, not only for the benefit of the community but also for one’s own virtue and life satisfaction. Flip on the television or pick up a […]
