{"id":10107,"date":"2024-10-04T12:07:02","date_gmt":"2024-10-04T16:07:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/newsroom\/?p=10107"},"modified":"2024-10-04T12:53:21","modified_gmt":"2024-10-04T16:53:21","slug":"purdue-trustees-chair-berghoff-announces-retirement-from-board","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/newsroom\/2024\/Q4\/purdue-trustees-chair-berghoff-announces-retirement-from-board","title":{"rendered":"Purdue trustees chair Berghoff announces retirement from board"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

INDIANAPOLIS \u2014 Michael Berghoff, chair of the Purdue University<\/a> Board of Trustees<\/a>, announced Friday (Oct. 4) that he will retire from the board effective Jan. 1, 2025, after more than 15 years of service as a trustee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A 1985 Purdue graduate with a bachelor\u2019s degree in industrial management, Berghoff was appointed a Purdue trustee in 2009 and has served as chair since July 2015. As chair, Berghoff has provided vital governance in leading the university through unprecedented growth and success while managing significant challenges in the higher education landscape and operating through a global pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In announcing his plans during the board\u2019s Friday (Oct. 4) meeting in Indianapolis, Berghoff said: \u201cI am forever grateful that Gov. Daniels appointed me to serve as your trustee and to have served as chairman of the Board of Trustees. The experience changed my life, and I\u2019m hopeful that any difference I might have made helped position Purdue as the nation’s most consequential public university \u2014 one our students, alumni, faculty and staff are proud to call their university.  You can look forward to a continuation of my fellow trustees’ commitment to excellence. Go Boilers!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During Berghoff\u2019s tenure, enrollment, national and global rankings, fundraising, research breakthroughs and partnerships have all seen significant increases. Two presidents, several deans, key administrators and numerous faculty joined the university, helping raise Purdue\u2019s reputation and standing among the world\u2019s top institutions of higher education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cChairman Berghoff radiates gold and black through and through, since his days as a student leader and student-athlete and across his successful career as an entrepreneur and business leader, and especially through his long-standing and outstanding service as a trustee for 15 years and as chairman of the Board of Trustees for nine years,\u201d President Mung Chiang said. \u201cHis deep passion and total dedication to Purdue is matched by the tremendous impact of his leadership for his alma mater. I\u2019ve had the precious opportunity and complete joy to work closely with Mike, especially since summer 2022. And I saw firsthand his strategic thinking, his team building, his tireless work ethic and his self-deprecating humor that help translate thoughtful deliberation to action-oriented execution. Purdue\u2019s stability and success throughout the past many years is rooted not only in the management team but also in the fiduciary board and the leadership of the board chair. Every moment, Mike has the best interest of Purdue in his heart, and every moment he pours his heart into Purdue. Our university is blessed to have Mike Berghoff as one of the best Boilermakers ever.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Michael
Berghoff (left) with Mitch Daniels at the Sept. 22, 2018, announcement of a $30 million gift from Bruce and Beth White and the Dean and Barbara White Foundation to fund the renovation of the Union Club Hotel (Purdue University photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As a trustee, Berghoff served as chair of the search committee that in 2012 selected Mitch Daniels as the university\u2019s 12th president. He worked closely with Daniels through the latter\u2019s 10 years as president.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been trying for days to sum up concisely how massive a contribution Mike Berghoff has made to the success of Purdue during his chairmanship of our board,\u201d President Emeritus Daniels said. \u201cIt\u2019s beyond me. The record is too huge. While much of American higher education is struggling financially and reputationally, Purdue is a shining exception primarily because its board is exceptional, and Mike\u2019s leadership has been indispensable to our trustees\u2019 uniquely excellent performance. Throughout his tenure, he has thought strategically, then led his fellow trustees to take a host of bold actions to effect those strategies. His self-effacing humor sometimes masks the total seriousness and deep thought that he brings to every aspect of trustee service, but those of us lucky enough to have worked under his chairmanship know that this is a uniquely insightful person \u2014 and the most committed, selfless Boilermaker in all of Boiler Nation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy years at Purdue were marked by a long series of blessings, but none I valued more, or meant more to Purdue\u2019s advance, than the partnership with the finest board chair for whom I or our institution could possibly have hoped.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an interview with the Purdue Alumnus in 2015 on his election as board chair, Berghoff said he hoped to \u201cdo whatever I can to help make Purdue one of the most desired places to learn, live, and work\u201d and to \u201creinforce to the campus community that this is a place where excellence in all we do is expected.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under his leadership, Purdue\u2019s successes have been numerous. Among them:<\/p>\n\n\n\n