Engagement, collaboration and student success are Purdue Global leader’s formula for success

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Eva Nodine has held several titles throughout the years, including working adult learner, online college student and nontraditional college student.

Nodine, now Purdue Global’s chief financial officer and chief operating officer, reflects on those life experiences and moments, leveraging them to help others pursue their dreams through education. 

Serving as Purdue Global’s CFO and COO since May 2024, Nodine oversees day-to-day operations of enrollment management, financial aid, information technology, marketing, human resources, finance, accounting and data analytics, always cognizant that everything she does impacts Purdue Global students who are often balancing life, work and classes, all in the pursuit of their comeback.

Encouraging goals, successes and comebacks

Nodine takes a holistic approach to Purdue Global’s goals, especially student success, growth and innovation.

Student success, to her, is more than the standard metrics. It is about students having the right resources at the right time and the ability to make meaningful progress toward the next step in life — complete with a degree, microcredential or certificate.

“We need to always ask, ‘How are we helping our students, our working adult learners, take their lives to the next level and open opportunities they haven’t had before? How are we growing individuals to overcome the various challenges that they will face in their careers and lives?’”

A key growth priority is to make Purdue Global a top institution in the online space, especially focusing on programs that are relevant and needed for workforce development and advancement. Innovation comes through teaching innovative ideas and technologies, as well as delivering a quality education in a cost-effective and accessible way for all.

Nodine recalls her personal experience with online education — dial-up internet service and slow desktop computers — and how she navigated the various challenges, which motivates her to aid in providing Purdue Global students a high-quality educational experience.

From her time as a student and throughout her career and life, Nodine knows the value of making a comeback.

“It’s never too late to have a comeback or to reassess what you are doing. I’ve had a lot of comebacks over the years. I know I’m not done yet,” she said. “That is what Purdue Global is all about: being able to take the next step at any time, starting your comeback and reimagining where you want your life to go.”

Overcoming challenges, charting new courses

Nodine’s drive and passion for education and mentoring others stems from her personal experiences as a young woman. Nodine and her siblings, from a young age, were in and out of foster care. A college education was not something that seemed attainable when she graduated from high school.

Nodine’s road to earning her bachelor’s degree, MBA and subsequent promotions started with her time as a bookkeeper at a family-owned jewelry store in Lafayette, Indiana.

She knew that to take the next career step she needed to go back to school, even while working full time. The jewelry shop agreed to pay for accounting courses from Ivy Tech Community College. It was at this point in her life she knew she needed to invest in herself to make a comeback and change her future.

After earning her associate degree, she wanted to go to Purdue University. But as a working adult, she couldn’t leave her job to attend classes. She began searching for alternatives, which included attending a college that offered online course credit toward a bachelor’s in accounting.

Nodine, a first-generation college student, earned her bachelor’s degree in forensic accounting and accounting. While working at an accounting firm in Lafayette, she passed all the CPA exams.

When Nodine was working on her MBA from 2016-18 through what is now Purdue University’s Mitch Daniels School of Business and raising her family, she kept reminding herself that it was part of a personal comeback, setting little goals to achieve a larger goal. 

“It’s also important to remember to celebrate one’s successes and milestones, whether that is completing a course or earning a degree from Purdue Global,” she said. “I love Purdue Global because I can relate to our students as I was the first in my family to go to college and had to balance work, family and school. It means a lot to me to know that I’m helping others in the same situation I was in get the additional support they need to be successful.”

But she wanted to achieve more.

“I always wanted to work for an organization that made a difference in people’s lives, considering my background and where I came from,” she said. “There are a lot of people who need mentorship and opportunity and to see there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Those generational cycles can be broken.”

As she looked for an organization that matched her mission to help others access education to improve their lives and economic trajectory, one jumped out at her: Purdue University.

Nodine has held numerous financial roles for Purdue since 2012, including her current role as deputy CFO and assistant treasurer of the university, senior director of financial planning and analysis, director of general ledger transformation, and director of benefits and Purdue Global treasurer from 2021-24.

She has made it her mission to mentor younger women through meetings, classes and programs at Purdue Global and Purdue University in areas of finance, administration and leadership. Other mentorship opportunities have been arranged through Purdue Alumni Association affinity networks and GOLD Alumni Mentor Program.

“What keeps me engaged and passionate about higher education is seeing that we are making a difference in our students’ lives through Purdue Global,” she said. 

About Purdue Global

Purdue Global is Purdue’s online university for working adults who have life experience and often some college credits. It offers flexible paths for students to earn an associate, bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degree, based on their work experience, military service and previous college credits, no matter where they are in their life journey. Purdue Global is a nonprofit, public university accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and backed by Purdue University. For more information, visit https://www.purdueglobal.edu.