Laura Murray-Kolb named Purdue’s first Sharon Rulon Broadhead Head of Nutrition Science

Written By: Rebecca Hoffa, rhoffa@purdue.edu

Laura Murray-Kolb, professor and head of the Purdue University Department of Nutrition Science, has been announced as the first Sharon Rulon Broadhead Head of Nutrition Science, thanks to a generous gift from 1965 College of Health and Human Sciences alumna Sharon Rulon Broadhead.

The $2.5 million endowed headship will fund Nutrition Science’s next giant leap under the discretion of Murray-Kolb.

“This named headship gift is a perfect example of the fact that you don’t just come to Purdue and get a degree,” Murray-Kolb said. “People like Sharie are the ones who recognize it and want to turn around and give back. They want to give the same opportunities to students that they had, and that is something that I’m just so grateful for. This gift is not only a testament to the long-lasting legacy that Purdue has in people’s lives, but it’s such an encouragement not just to me but really to all the faculty.”

A lifelong Purdue connection

For Broadhead, who received a special merit scholarship to attend Purdue and study home economics, this gift is made in appreciation of the opportunities Purdue provided her. Raised by parents who were educators, Broadhead and her husband, Jim, have been repeat philanthropists in higher education at Purdue and other institutions. Her husband’s gift for her 40th birthday was a Purdue scholarship in her name that has benefited many students over the years.

After earning a degree in home economics, food and nutrition in 1965, Broadhead began her career in the Stauffer Chemical Company research lab in New York. The company patented her use of whey in foods, which was novel because whey was often discarded at the time and not used as a protein supplement like it is today. While working, she received her MS in science education, nutrition from Columbia University. After raising four children, Sharon received an advanced certificate in landscape design from the New York Botanical Gardens and started a small landscape business.

“Purdue prepared me for life and enabled me to establish lifelong friendships,” Broadhead said. “It is my honor to give this gift to endow the head of Purdue University’s Department of Nutrition Science. Laura Murray-Kolb is not only well known in the field of nutrition but is an exemplary leader. I cannot think of a more competent person to have in this position as this headship is named.”

Shaping the future

Murray-Kolb noted while she’s weighing options for how to best distribute the funds for the most impact in the department, she wants to maintain Broadhead’s legacy in all of the gift’s applications.  

“One of the things I want to do with this gift is to honor who Sharie is as an individual and what she values,” Murray-Kolb said. “I’ve been able to learn a little bit about her as an individual, and she is someone who cares deeply. She’s very philanthropic. It helps me better understand where her mind and heart are and helps me think about how I can be a good steward of the gift that she’s given.”

While Murray-Kolb is excited about the potential Broadhead’s gift brings to the department and is still exploring her options, she’s currently considering three outcomes for the gift: a new communications position to increase awareness and visibility of the department, pilot funding to support faculty and graduate student research funding.

“The head is privy to what’s going on in the entire department,” Murray-Kolb said. “What excites me is to be able to think through how we can use the funds to really improve the department as a whole. With nutrition being at the forefront of many people’s minds and growing federal attention focused on its importance, this is a particularly advantageous time for the named headship to be established. The associated funds will be instrumental in increasing our visibility and strengthening Purdue Nutrition Science’s reputation as a trusted authority and leader in the field.”