Purdue News

March 2, 1998

Purdue vice president makes career change

Gappa, a professor of educational administration and a nationally recognized authority on faculty careers and employment arrangements, describes her decision as a career and lifestyle choice.

"I went straight into administration 25 years ago when I received my doctorate," she said today (Monday, 3/2). "I've always done research simultaneously with administrative assignments. Now I'll have a chance to work with students and expand my scholarly work. I'm very excited about these opportunities. While I will miss many of the challenges of administrative work, I believe it is time for a change. I feel very good about what we have accomplished, and I'm confident that the human relations effort will continue to move forward at Purdue."

Gappa came to Purdue as the university's first vice president for human relations in 1991. She has had broad responsibilities for quality-of-life programs with a special focus on minority and gender issues. Under her leadership, the Diversity Resource Office and Women's Resource Office were established, and the Affirmative Action Office was restructured.

President Steven C. Beering said Gappa's administrative work broke new ground at Purdue. "We are all indebted to Dr. Gappa because she has pioneered the effort to make the human relations agenda a part of everything we do at the university," Beering said. "As the first incumbent in a new position she accepted the difficult challenge of defining the mission and goals of her office and then putting them into action. Although she is giving up her administrative role, she leaves us in a very strong position to build on the success of the human relations programs, which will continue to be a high priority for Purdue."

Marilyn J. Haring, dean of the School of Education, said Gappa will be an important asset on the school's faculty. "Dr. Gappa possesses tremendous stature as a scholar and great breadth and depth of experience in higher education administration," Haring said. "Her presence on the faculty will enhance the prestige of the school and will be a wonderful opportunity for the rest of our faculty."

Gappa came to Purdue in 1991 from San Francisco State University where she had been associate vice president for faculty affairs/dean of faculty and professor of women's studies. Previously she was director of affirmative action/equal opportunity programs and assistant professor at Utah State University, and senior staff associate at the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems in Boulder, Colo.

During the past seven years at Purdue, Gappa has led the development of harassment policies and procedures, guidelines for conflict resolution, the Diversiteam and other programs for diversity awareness, a relocation assistance program for spouses of faculty and others moving to Purdue, and the annual Day of Service held in conjunction with Martin Luther King Day.

She established the Human Relations Advisory Committee and involved faculty, staff and students in setting the human relations agenda. During her service as vice president, the Office of Human Relations developed the report "From Barriers to Bridges: The Purdue University Plan for Enhancing Diversity." In recent months, she has led the effort to compile the report "The Status of Women at Purdue University," which will be released this semester.

Gappa graduated from George Washington University with a degree in music in 1968 and subsequently received a master's degree in musicology, also from George Washington. In 1973, she earned her doctorate in higher education from Utah State, and in 1980 she earned a certificate in educational management from Harvard University.

In recent years, her research has focused on faculty employment, with an emphasis on part-time faculty. She is co-author of the book "The Invisible Faculty," which became the landmark work on part-time faculty when it was published in 1993. Earlier research targeted equity issues, diversity, women in higher education and affirmative action. She has published numerous articles and research reports and regularly presents her work at national conferences and at colleges and universities throughout the country.

Source: Judith Gappa, (765) 494-5830
Writer: Jeanne Norberg, (765) 494-2096; e-mail: jeanne_norberg@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu

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