Governor reappoints Spurgeon, Lehman, White to Board of Trustees
July 7, 2014
Gov. Mike Pence has reappointed Thomas Spurgeon, Gary Lehman and Bruce White to serve on the Purdue Board of Trustees through June 30, 2017.
Spurgeon, chair of the Purdue Board of Trustees, is an entrepreneur who has built companies throughout the United States. Most recently, he was president and CEO of Lincoln Office in Peoria, Ill., one of the country's largest distributors of Steelcase furniture. He sold the company in 2001 and remained with Lincoln as a consultant.
Spurgeon, who has served as an alumni representative on the Board of Trustees since 2005, received a bachelor's degree in industrial management from Purdue in 1961. Following military service, he earned an MBA from Indiana University and was honored as a member of the Beta Gamma Sigma international honor society.
Lehman, who has served as a Purdue trustee since 2010, is chairman of the board of Oerlikon Fairfield and president of Oerlikon AG-Americas. Lehman has also held executive leadership positions at John Deere, Federal Mogul Corp, ITT Industries and Philips Electronics. He is the founder of Cannelton Group, a firm specializing in providing management services to underperforming, privately held manufacturing companies.
Lehman graduated from Purdue in 1974 with a bachelor's degree in industrial management. He also holds an MBA with honors from Case Western Reserve University, where he was the recipient of the Eaton Scholarship and a member of Beta Gamma Sigma International Honor Society.
White, who has served on the board since 2011. is the founder, chairman and chief executive officer of White Lodging, a fully integrated developer, owner and manager of premium brand hotels. Over the past 25 years, the company's managed portfolio has grown to 170 mid- to large-scale hotels in 21 states.
White is a graduate of Purdue and the Harvard Graduate School of Business O.P.M. Program, and is the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate of Business Administration in Hospitality Management from Johnson & Wales University.
