On Oct. 3 and 4 Purdue’s Board of Trustees held their October executive meeting for the first time in Indianapolis. This meeting was held at the Indiana Historical Society in downtown Indianapolis. While the first session was closed to the public, the session on Oct. 4 was open to the public beginning at 8:30 a.m.
Presidential Performance at-risk pay 2024-25
The meeting opened with the approval of the presidential performance at-risk pay for 2024-25 presented by Malcom DeKryger. At-risk pay is a form of compensation awarded based on performance and is paid in addition to their base salary.
“Often, this at-risk portion is sort of a statement about their platform, their priorities,” DeKryger said.
The money awarded is representative of Chiang’s commitment to meeting 20 objectives in areas such as finances, student research and educational success.
“President Chang’s at-risk target is $210,000 which means the base four-point recommendation from our committee would be to award President Chang 104% of his at-risk total. Thus, he would receive $218,400,” DeKryger said.
Ratification of Appointments
Six individuals were appointed new roles as professors within the Purdue faculty including: Ramaswamy Subramanian, named director of the Bindley Bioscience Center; Alina Alexeenko, named Reilly Professor in Aeronautics and Astronautics and Chemical Engineering; Gesualdo Scutari, named Pedro and Barbara Granadillo Professor in Industrial Engineering; Juan Wachs, named James H. and Barbara H. Greene Professor in Industrial Engineering; Satish Ukkusuri, named Hubert and Audrey Kleasen Professorship in Civil Engineering; Jeffrey Reuer, named Blake Family Endowed Chair in Strategic Management and Governance.
Housing and Dining Rates Fall 2025
Beth McCuskey, Vice Provost of Student Life, gave a presentation about housing rates and meal plans. New housing and dining rates were approved by the board in an effort to get more students living on Purdue campuses.
“There was a shift probably eight or 10 years ago where students began prioritizing affordability far more,” McCuskey said. “We still have plenty of students who want to live with us, but, with the break structure, the way that it’s been compared to the community, that absolutely played into it. So, affordability is the key.”
Under this new plan, three pillars of student life will be prioritized: affordability, sustainability and scaling capability. On-campus dorm rates will be divided into three tiers with varying rates based on the room type.
“Each one of the tiers are grounded in amenities and distance and size, etc. So we have three different tier types, each one of our room types, and we’ve been working hard to try to get every one of our rates into this year’s structure,” McCuskey said.
Majority of beds, 79%, will have a price increase by less than $50 per month with a majority of them only seeing a $30 per month increase. This increase in room and board fees would equate to about a 3.5% increase from what students are paying for now.
“The vast majority of our rooms are in that category for the rate increase, and that’s per month on the meal plan. Focusing on affordability, we’re proposing that increase by 3.5% again, the investments in the program, additional food options and just overall health of the system,” McCuskey said.
According to the presentation, this rate increase will, “allow for continued reinvestment in student support, enhanced facilities and common spaces, hall wireless internet upgrades and sustainable increases in future capacity.”
As for expanding student housing, there are plans to expand current housing capacities in the next two years. As for how this will be executed, the current plan is to communicate housing rates and meal plans directly to students via a variety of communication channels.
“Beginning next week, we’ll launch the process where we’re drawing students to choose to come back [from off-campus housing]. We’ll be launching a lottery model that will be revealed next week more fully,” McCuskey said.
From October to December, there will be communication with current students on the 2025-26 rates and meal plans as well as the launch of a new housing reapplication process. From January to May 2025, these new plans will be communicated to admitted students. As of August 2025 these new rates will begin in the fall 2025 contracts.
Update on Indianapolis
Dan Halser, Chief of Operating Officer for Purdue University in Indianapolis, and Dave Umulis, Senior Vice Provost for Purdue in Indianapolis gave an update on the current and future state of the Purdue in Indianapolis campus.
Hasler introduced the campus as being an advantageous opportunity for students to get work experience while receiving a Purdue education.
“We believe that, as a university, as attractive as we are, we have the ability to be more attractive to new cohorts of students by being able to offer them a platform where they can get work experience while they’re getting a Purdue education,” Hasler said.
Additional work experience is not only good for students, but is advantageous for companies looking to hire from local Indiana universities.
“These companies generally know that it’s easier to keep somebody at graduation if they formed a relationship with them before they’ve left,” Hasler said. “If they get to see the great things that are happening by having more of our graduates have experiences and relationships with central Indiana companies, we believe we’ll be able to keep more of them here in central Indiana.”
As the Purdue community continues to grow in Indianapolis, new opportunities for students and the Purdue in Indianapolis identity are being explored.
“We’re using this as an opportunity to be the number one place for a STEM learning experience, taking advantage of the city,” Umulis said. “Part of what we’re building in Indianapolis is having them [students] create a new Indianapolis identity, but also leveraging it from a stronger Purdue identity.”
There have also been plans to expand research and academic degrees in the near future including new undergraduate offerings in 2025 such as the integrating the Daniel School of Business and engineering courses, entrepreneurship programs and certificates and new graduate programs. New internships and co-ops will start in Spring 2025 as well.
“In the fall, we’ll have business majors in Indianapolis in partnership with engineering. 60% business, 40% engineering,” Ulumis said. “The bottom line is that while we’re starting up, Purdue is very good at startups.”
Appointing New Officers
Michael Berghoff will be stepping down at the end of this year after 15 years of serving on the Board of Trustees.
“We’re still on a pathway to being the most consequential public university in the country,” Berghoff said. “It’s been a privilege to serve, to set that stage.”
Chiang gave a few words about Berghoff and his time at Purdue.
“Since his days as a student leader and a student athlete, and across his successful career as an entrepreneur and business leader, in our state and his specialty, through his long-standing and outstanding service as a trustee for 15 years and as Chairman of the Board of Trustees for nine years, his deep, attached and total dedication to Purdue is matched by the tremendous impact of his leadership for his alma mater,” Chiang said.
Gary J. Lehman will be taking over as Chairman of the Board of Trustees and Michael Klipsch as Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees as of January 2025.
Abigail Godsen (she/her) is a junior majoring in Applied Information Sciences with a minor in Classics. She is Campus Editor for The Campus Citizen. When she isn’t writing, Abby likes to cook, do crossword puzzles and drink a lot of tea. She can be summoned using anything shiny or books.
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