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April 8, 2008
Alumnus donates $2 million to College of Technology, Purdue Libraries
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - A Purdue University alumnus and his wife were honored Tuesday (April 8) for their unrestricted gift of $2 million to the College of Technology and Purdue Libraries.The deferred gift from Richard and Kyle Thomas of Greenwood, Ind., was announced at the Management and Economics Library, located in the Krannert Building.
Richard Thomas received a bachelor's degree in industrial economics from Purdue in 1962 and is president of the Gilliam Group Inc. in Indianapolis. His wife, Kyle, is a certified public accountant who owns her own accounting firm in Greenwood. She received an MBA in finance from Butler University.
The gift announcement is part of Purdue's Technology Week, which is April 7-11. The purpose of the week is to highlight how technology impacts lives, provide a glimpse of tomorrow's innovations, and recognize the accomplishments of College of Technology faculty, students and alumni.
"This generous gift from Richard and Kyle Thomas will create opportunities and meet a variety of needs in both the College of Technology and Purdue Libraries," said Purdue President France A. Córdova. "It is always heartening when a Purdue alumnus gives back in such a significant way. We are grateful for the flexibility of this gift, which can be used in a variety of ways, including increasing student access to education and ensuring their success."
Ninety percent of the gift, or $1.8 million, is designated for the College of Technology, and the remaining 10 percent is designated for Purdue Libraries.
Unrestricted funds allow the recipient to allocate money where the need is the greatest. Examples of priorities in the College of Technology include student scholarships and fellowships, programs to help students develop leadership skills, faculty development programs, and global and study-abroad initiatives. Purdue Libraries priorities include renovation of infrastructure and keeping information and technology resources current.
Richard Thomas said he and his wife chose to support the college because of the years he spent in industry working with the college and its faculty. He owned Transportation Safety Devices Inc., an Indianapolis-based manufacturer of vehicle electrical control systems for 23 years before selling the company in 2000. He then started his own company, the Gilliam Group Inc.
Thomas began as a student at Purdue in 1955 and completed two years of mechanical engineering courses. In 1957 he entered military service, earning an officer's commission as well as Airborne and Ranger certifications, and returned to Purdue in 1960 to complete his education.
"There weren't a lot of colleges of technology out there at the time, and I liked what they focused on - applied research as opposed to theory," Thomas said. "I developed a good relationship with the college, donated a lot of equipment to them and am proud to support the work in manufacturing and other areas that is going on there now."
Thomas, a member of the Purdue Libraries Dean's Advisory Council, said he was impressed with the direction Libraries has been taking in the last several years in terms of improving technology, expanding online archives, staying open more hours and other efforts to make the library system more user-friendly to students and the community. He said he and his wife plan to add to their initial contribution to both colleges.
"People around the state and the nation know Purdue's name and respect the values it stands for - hard work, studying and achievement," Thomas said. "My wife and I are proud to be able to support the university and hope that our contributions will make a significant impact in improving the lives of students."
The Purdue College of Technology, established in 1964, is one of the nation's largest and was one of the first of its kind in the country. It educates more than 5,700 undergraduates at locations around the state. In addition to the main campus at West Lafayette, the college has 10 statewide locations in New Albany, Columbus, Lafayette, South Bend, Kokomo, Anderson, Muncie, Richmond, Indianapolis and Greensburg.
The Purdue Libraries system on the West Lafayette campus includes 11 subject-oriented libraries, the Hicks Undergraduate Library and the Archives and Special Collections. Purdue Libraries offers a variety of electronic information sources, including more than 286,000 e-books and 33,750 e-journals. It also houses a print collection of more than 2.5 million volumes and more than 3 million microforms of older scholarly materials, as well as many current scientific and technical reports.Writer: Kim Medaris, (765) 494-6998, kmedaris@purdue.edu
Sources: Murray Blackwelder, senior vice president for advancement, (765) 496-2144, mblackwelder@purdue.edu
Dennis R. Depew, dean of the College of Technology, (765) 494-2552, ddepew@purdue.edu
James L. Mullins, dean of Purdue Libraries, (765) 494-2900, jmullins@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
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