Bowman appointed new dean of Purdue’s College of Health and Human Sciences

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Following a national search, Purdue professor of toxicology Aaron Bowman has been appointed dean of Purdue’s College of Health and Human Sciences, effective Monday (Feb. 10).

Bowman joined Purdue in 2018 as head of the School of Health Sciences and has served as interim dean since November 2023. His research spans genetics, pharmacology, biochemistry, and cell and developmental biology, focusing on gene-environment interactions between metal exposure and neurodegenerative diseases. Under his leadership, Health Sciences saw significant enrollment growth and has doubled its number of honors students. 

Bowman also serves as president-elect of the International Neurotoxicology Association and chairs the U.S. Department of Labor’s Advisory Board on Toxic Substances and Worker Health. He received the Outstanding New Environmental Scientist Award from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in 2008.

Provost Patrick Wolfe said of Bowman’s appointment, “We’re thrilled to appoint a proven research leader with a track record as extensive as Aaron’s to lead our efforts to advance human health. With the launch of our One Health initiative at the intersection of human, animal and plant health, new opportunities abound for HHS, and we’re eager to strengthen it further.”

As dean, Bowman plans to leverage Purdue’s additional strategic initiatives — Purdue Computes, Purdue’s new presence in Indianapolis, and Purdue’s reimagined Mitch Daniels School of Business — alongside One Health to support and develop leading academic programs, collaborative research opportunities, and clinical engagement both across and beyond Purdue.

“These indeed are exciting times for Purdue as we embark on our ambitious but essential mission to make giant leaps in improving health outcomes for all living things and driving economic growth regionally and globally,” Bowman said. “Our faculty, programs and research efforts will continue to make lives better.” 

A major part of One Health is the planned Interdisciplinary Life Sciences Research Building for West Lafayette. The $160 million project would provide a new, shared facility for research institutes such as the Purdue Institute for Cancer Research, as well as other life science research on campus.

Additionally, construction is underway on the $160 million Nursing and Pharmacy Education Building, a joint project between HHS and the College of Pharmacy, designed to address the country’s critical workforce needs for skilled nurses and pharmacists and expand interprofessional education opportunities that mirror modern health care settings. Completion of the facility at the corner of Mitch Daniels Boulevard and Russell Street is expected by fall 2026.

Bowman earned his PhD in biomedical sciences from the University of California, San Diego, after graduating cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in microbiology from Brigham Young University. He completed postdoctoral fellowships at both Princeton University and Baylor College of Medicine.

He began his academic career in 2006 as an assistant professor at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in the departments of Neurology and Pediatrics, where he earned tenure and held various positions, including director of Vanderbilt’s T32 Training Program in Environmental Toxicology.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a public research university leading with excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities in the United States, Purdue discovers, disseminates and deploys knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 107,000 students study at Purdue across multiple campuses, locations and modalities, including more than 58,000 at our main campus in West Lafayette and Indianapolis. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition 13 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap — including its comprehensive urban expansion, the Mitch Daniels School of Business, Purdue Computes and the One Health initiative — at https://www.purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives.