Alum, wife commit $7M to College of Engineering in support of scholarships

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue University has received a $7 million commitment from alum Bill McFadden (BS industrial management ’68) and his wife, Sharon, to support College of Engineering scholarships. The gift will establish an endowment called the Sharon and Bill McFadden Scholarship Fund.

The purpose of the endowment is to provide merit-based scholarship funds that will be used to encourage and incentivize careers in engineering, recruit top talent, and maintain student excellence throughout the College of Engineering programs in West Lafayette and Indianapolis.

“We are truly honored by this generous gift from Bill and Sharon McFadden,” said Arvind Raman, the John A. Edwardson Dean of the College of Engineering. “It is our mission to build Purdue Engineering into the most consequential engineering college in the nation, and that starts with our students. This commitment will help make it possible for the most talented young minds to come to Purdue, thrive here and go on to make the world a better place.”

Bill McFadden began his career with Grumman Aerospace, now Northrop Grumman, where he worked on engineering reports for projects including the F-14 Tomcat jet and the original NASA lunar landers. After earning an MBA from Loyola University Chicago, he held executive roles in banking and with the financial consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers before retiring from S&P Global as a director.

Sharon McFadden is a Loyola law school graduate and former partner at Andersen.

“Sharon and I are proud to support Purdue, which has played such an important role in our lives,” Bill McFadden said. “I knew early on that I wanted a technical degree — and with such a strong reputation in science and engineering, Purdue was my first and only choice. My degree opened a lot of doors early on, particularly at Grumman, and we believe the College of Engineering’s commitment to excellence defines the university even as it continues to grow. That’s why we chose to provide opportunities for the next generation of Boilermaker engineers.”

Julie Dussliere, president and CEO of the Purdue for Life Foundation, said, “We are incredibly grateful to Bill and Sharon McFadden for their significant commitment, which will benefit Purdue and its students for many years to come. Their decision to join in and contribute on Purdue Day of Giving makes it even more meaningful — reflecting a shared spirit that defines a day when every gift, no matter the size, makes a difference.”

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 106,000 students study at Purdue across multiple campuses, locations and modalities, including more than 57,000 at our main campus locations in West Lafayette and Indianapolis. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition 14 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap — including its integrated, comprehensive Indianapolis urban expansion; the Mitch Daniels School of Business; Purdue Computes; and the One Health initiative — at https://www.purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives/.

About the Purdue for Life Foundation

The Purdue for Life Foundation helps people who love Purdue stay connected, get involved and give back. Created in March 2020, the foundation deepens alumni ties to Purdue, drives and coordinates all alumni-related activities across the Purdue family’s postgraduation lives, and works with alumni and friends to garner support for the university. Learn more at https://www.purdueforlife.org/.