Purdue launches search for Purdue Northwest chancellor

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue University has launched a national search to hire the first chancellor of Purdue University Northwest, an institution that will officially come into existence on July 1, 2016, as the result of the unification of Purdue University Calumet and Purdue University North Central.

The chancellor will oversee the integration of the two campuses and be the first chief executive officer of Purdue University Northwest with an opportunity to lead the faculty and staff in shaping the new institution.

“The inaugural chancellor of Purdue University Northwest is facing an extraordinary opportunity to build one great university for Northwest Indiana, completing its transformation and establishing an institutional anchor in the region that will positively impact students and businesses for generations to come,” said Purdue University President Mitch Daniels.

Gary Lehman, a member of the Purdue Board of Trustees, will chair the search committee charged with providing in early fall a slate of outstanding candidates capable of completing the integration of Purdue Calumet and Purdue North Central.

The new chancellor of Purdue University Northwest will be responsible for working with stakeholders from the two existing campuses to form a new set of shared values and priorities as well as to advance academic quality, student success and affordability. The chancellor also will meet with local employers and community leaders to ensure the new institution is meeting the needs of the regional economy.

In order to accomplish these goals, the new chancellor should have proven leadership ability and a strong record of organizational building in their field.

Once unification is complete, Purdue University Northwest will be a comprehensive university enrolling approximately 16,000 students, employing more than 1,500 faculty and staff, and offering more than 45 graduate and undergraduate programs of study on two campuses. The two campus locations will be respectively identified as Purdue University Northwest-Calumet and Purdue University Northwest-North Central.

Last July the Purdue Board of Trustees approved the creation of Purdue University Northwest, reflecting the university’s commitment to finding administrative cost savings and promoting student affordability and accessibility.

Interested applicants should apply to pnwchancellor@purdue.edu. The full job description is available at http://www.purdue.edu/hr/careers/pdf/Chancellor_of_Purdue_Northwest.pdf.

Members of the search committee:

Gary Lehman (Chair), Purdue trustee

Jeff Shires, PNC Faculty Senate chair and associate professor of communication at Purdue North Central

Janusz Duzinkiewicz, Intercampus Faculty Council member and associate professor of history at Purdue North Central

Staci Trekles, clinical assistant professor of instructional technology at Purdue North Central

Feng-Song Wang, outgoing Faculty Senate chair and associate professor of biology at Purdue Calumet

Geoffrey Schultz, professor of educational psychology and special education at Purdue Calumet

Peter Dragnev, speaker of the Purdue University faculty for the Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne Senate, and professor and chair of mathematics at IPFW

Levon Esters, University Senate Faculty Affairs Committee chair and associate professor of youth development and agricultural education at Purdue West Lafayette

Simon Rhodes, dean of the School of Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and professor of biology

Audeen Fentiman, special assistant to the president, associate dean of engineering for graduate education and interdisciplinary programs, and professor of nuclear engineering at Purdue West Lafayette

Source: Gary Lehman, 765-494-9710, trustees@purdue.edu