Trustees elect Mitchell E. Daniels Jr. as Purdue's 12th president

June 21, 2012  


mitch daniels talks with students

 Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels talks with students outside Stewart Center  following the announcement that he will become Purdue University's  12th President. (Purdue University photo)


Download Photo

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Purdue Board of Trustees onThursday (June 21) unanimously selected Indiana Gov. Mitchell E. Daniels Jr. tobe the university's next president.

Daniels will start in January at the conclusion of hissecond term as governor. He will be Purdue's 12th president, succeeding FranceA. Córdova, who will step down July 15.

Keith Krach, board chairman, heralded Daniels' appointmentas "an innovative, game-changing move for Purdue."

"Gov. Mitch Daniels will continue to raise the globalprofile of Purdue. He's committed to the success of our land-grant institution,he's an advocate for economic progress through innovative research and he'smade Indiana the state to watch for the last several years," Krach said. "Withhis leadership, intellect and passion for higher education, there's no limit tothe greatness Purdue can achieve."

Daniels praised Purdue as an invaluable asset for Indianaand the country and as an educational institution globally renowned forproducing discoveries and graduates in high demand.

Daniels said his first priority would be to learn from thefaculty and earn their trust and collaboration to help further Purdue'sresearch and education missions.

"No institution of any kind means more to Indianatoday or tomorrow as Purdue University. It educates at the highest level theengineers, scientists, agricultural experts and information technologists onwhom our state and national success disproportionately depend," Danielssaid.

"Its research gives rise to the innovative new goods,services and companies on which American and Hoosier prosperity must be built.I can conceive of no other assignment in which a person has the chance tocontribute more to building the kind of Indiana of which we dream."

mitch daniels speaks at loeb

 Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels speaks in Loeb Playhouse after being elected Thursday (June 21) by Purdue Board of Trustees as the university's 12th president. Seated is Trustees chair Keith Krach. (Purdue Photo by Steven Yang)


Download Photo

Daniels has often praised Purdue in his eight years as Indiana'schief economic development officer, saying "what is taught so well here atPurdue is what the nation and the state need most: math, science, engineering,agricultural science - the critical intellectual building blocks of a winningnational economy."

Daniels, Indiana's 49th governor, was electedin 2004 and re-elected in 2008 with the largest number of votes ever recordedby any candidate for public office in state history. Chief among hisaccomplishments are turning a state budget deficit into a surplus, launchingIndiana into the top ranks of business-friendly states, and reforming andimproving the performance of government across the board.

Daniels has held a variety of top-level positions inbusiness and politics. He worked 11 years at Eli Lilly and Co., includingservice as president of the company's North American Pharmaceutical Operations.Previously, he was CEO of the Hudson Institute, then a contract researchorganization known for its analyses of the central role of technology in human progress,among other issues. He also served as an adviser to President Ronald Reagan, directorof the Office of Management and Budget for President George W. Bush, and chiefof staff for Indiana Sen. Richard Lugar. Daniels was widely viewed in 2011 as aviable candidate for the U.S. presidency before choosing not to run.

He is the author of two books, "Keeping the Republic:Saving America by Trusting Americans" and "Notes from the Road,"a chronicle of his Indiana travels as a first-time political candidate.

Daniels earned a bachelor's degree with honors from theWoodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at PrincetonUniversity in 1971 and a law degree from Georgetown University in 1979. He isthe recipient of eight honorary degrees, from institutions including ButlerUniversity, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and Wabash College.

Córdova, Purdue's 11th president, said Daniels' experienceas a leader in the top levels of business and government will serve Purduewell.

"Gov. Daniels has said that the quality of Purdue'sfaculty is its strength. He is committed to excellence in the faculty ranks andwill continue to hire and retain talented faculty members. He understands thevalue of superb staff, having hired many in his diverse leadership roles. Likeall of us in the academy, he is committed to student success," Córdovasaid. "The challenges faced by public research universities today aregreat, and Purdue is fortunate to have found a focused, experienced leader inMitch Daniels."

Córdova guided the university through the most severeeconomic downturn since the Great Depression, working to preserve the qualityof a Purdue education and the value of a Purdue degree, boosting the studentexperience, and increasing research funding and technology transfer to improveboth discovery and delivery for economic impact. She also focused on sustainingPurdue's financial future through cost containment and developing a decadalfunding plan to generate new sources of revenue.

During her tenure, faculty accomplishments included a Nobel Prizein Chemistry, two World Food Prizes, and two National Medals of Technology andInnovation.

Founded in 1869, Purdue is an Association of AmericanUniversities (AAU), Big Ten Conference, land-grant university system with fourcampuses. Ranked by U.S. News & World Report as one of the country's top 25public universities, Purdue enjoys global acclaim for the quality of itsteaching and research in a wide range of fields.

On the West Lafayette campus alone, the university offerssome 5,300 courses in more than 350 specializations, organized through 12undergraduate colleges/schools and the Graduate School. Approximately 40,000students are enrolled at the West Lafayette campus, while some 35,000 otherspursue degree work at four regional campuses and 10 Statewide Technologyeducation sites. Its graduates - including more than 426,000 living alumniaround the globe - have explored the surface of the moon; quarterbacked SuperBowl championship teams; excelled in a range of corporate, artistic,educational, technical and scientific pursuits; and received honors rangingfrom the Oscar to the Nobel Prize.

More than 18,200 people work at Purdue campuses andfacilities statewide, with 15,500 faculty and staff on the West Lafayettecampus. Purdue's annual operating budget is more than $2 billion withapproximately $600 million in sponsored research expenditures on the WestLafayette campus. The current value of the Purdue endowment is above $2billion.

Writer: Chris Sigurdson, 765-496-2644, sig@purdue.edu

Sources: KeithKrach, keith@3points.org

               MitchDaniels, media contact: 317-232-1622

               FranceA. Córdova, president@purdue.edu

Note to Journalists: Remarks from the event include those from President-elect Mitchell E. Daniels: http://www.purdue.edu/president/p12/remarks/120621Daniels.html; Keith Krach, chairman of the Board of Trustees: http://www.purdue.edu/president/p12/remarks/120621Krach.html; and President France A. Córdova: http://www.purdue.edu/president/p12/remarks/120621Cordova.html

Purdue University, 610 Purdue Mall, West Lafayette, IN 47907, (765) 494-4600

© 2014-18 Purdue University | An equal access/equal opportunity university | Integrity Statement | Copyright Complaints | Brand Toolkit | Maintained by Marketing and Media

Trouble with this page? Disability-related accessibility issue? Please contact us at online@purdue.edu so we can help.