A Fond Farewell

Teresa Eloff retires after 42 years at Purdue

Story by Chris Adam, photo provided

Teresa Eloff has retired after 42 years at Purdue. She most recently served as associate director of student services and director of recruitment for HHS. Eloff’s previous positions include academic advisor, director of undergraduate recruitment and alumni activities, and graduate teaching assistant.

Recruiting was in its infancy in 1975 when Eloff began her career, and since then, she has talked with thousands of prospective students and their families, introducing them to the many programs of study and other opportunities offered, citing examples of alumni success. She comes from a true Boilermaker family — she earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Purdue, and her son, Jimmie, and daughter, Michelle, also graduated from Purdue.

“It has been my privilege and honor to work for Purdue University and especially for the College of Health and Human Sciences and the College of Consumer and Family Sciences,” Eloff says. “My career path has allowed me to meet and work with so many wonderful individuals who have enriched my life. I will miss my colleagues and the opportunity of working with HHS/CFS Ambassadors.”

Scott Haner (HTM ’79), a retired vice president of YUM! Brands, remembers Eloff as one of the very first people he met when he came to Purdue as a freshman in 1976.

“I came in, like so many freshmen, thinking that I knew everything and what was going on,” Haner says. “But I obviously didn’t. And Teresa was right there being so wonderful and welcoming. She was like a shadow of joy within this very large university, making sure that I felt at home and felt special, even among so many students.”

Throughout his time at Purdue, Haner kept in regular contact with Eloff. Their friendship continues to this day, and Haner says she remains one of the lasting impacts Purdue has had on his life.

“I never sensed she looked at her job as a job,” he says. “It was more like what she was meant to do. And when she worked with the student ambassadors, she would tell them they need to present the joy of Purdue to everyone they meet. And that’s truly what she did to everyone she met along the way here at Purdue.”

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