Today’s top 5 from Purdue University

‘Purdue News Now’

From Purdue’s impressive fundraising campaign announcement to another prestigious recognition, Trevor Peters has all the latest Boilermaker news in this week’s edition of “Purdue News Now.”

Plus, check out five good stories below you may have missed.

Purdue’s strong academic reputation and prestige pushes it to No. 11 among nation’s public universities, 26th overall in U.S.

Purdue University remains in elite company globally and across the U.S., ranking No. 11 among the nation’s public universities and No. 26 overall in the U.S. in the 2025 Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings released Tuesday (Feb. 18). Purdue is ranked No. 55 in the world, and no other public university in Indiana is ranked in the top 200. Purdue’s impressive showing for its reputation and prestige in the latest Global Academic Reputation Survey reflects a major jump from consistently ranking among the top 80 worldwide in recent history. The 2025 edition ranked 300 institutions from 38 countries and territories.

Media contact: Erin Murphy, ermurphy@purdue.edu 

Purdue launches 5-year, $4 billion campaign

On Saturday (Feb. 15), Purdue University President Mung Chiang announced the launch of Victories & Heroes: Your Campaign for Purdue. The goal of the fundraising campaign — the largest in the university’s history — is $4 billion raised by early 2030. Chiang made the announcement during the President’s Council Annual Dinner at the Purdue for Life Foundation’s Annual Week in Naples, Florida. This year’s events were well attended by about 600 alumni, university leaders and trustees.

Media contact: Erin Murphy, ermurphy@purdue.edu 

Air inside your home may be more polluted than outside due to everyday chemical products

When you walk through a pine forest, the crisp, fresh scent is one of the first things you notice. But bringing that pine scent or other aromas indoors with the help of chemical products — yes, air fresheners, wax melts, floor cleaners, deodorants and others — rapidly fills the air with nanoscale particles that are small enough to get deep into your lungs, Purdue University engineers have found over a series of studies. These nanoparticles form when fragrances interact with ozone, which enters buildings through ventilation systems, triggering chemical transformations that create new airborne pollutants.

Media contact: Erin Murphy, ermurphy@purdue.edu 

AP Video – Airplane safety: What to do in an emergency

Stephanie Brown, director of aviation safety in Purdue University’s School of Aviation and Transportation Technology, explains how pilots and airport management prepare for emergencies and what passengers should do in these situations. Brown says all staff involved in aviation safety go through special emergency response training. During winter weather, airports will perform a traction test on runways impacted by snow or ice. This test gives aviation personnel the information needed to determine how much runway is required for a safe landing.

Media contact: Trevor Peters, peter237@purdue.edu

Purdue researchers travel to help households, businesses recover from LA wildfires

Purdue wildfire response and recovery expert Andrew Whelton and PhD student Cristiane Grossi Ferrarezzi have been in the Los Angeles area this week to assist households and businesses affected by last month’s Palisades fire and Eaton fire. Their assistance has included collecting data on the community’s needs to better inform the response and sharing observations and expertise with local groups leading the recovery effort. They also have been collaborating with researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles, while on-site. Whelton, a Purdue professor of civil engineering and environmental and ecological engineering, has traveled to the sites of three other major U.S. wildfires in recent years to help communities restore their drinking water systems.

Media contact: Erin Murphy, ermurphy@purdue.edu 

MORE: Recent AP video stories

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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 107,000 students study at Purdue across multiple campuses, locations and modalities, including more than 58,000 at our main campus in West Lafayette and Indianapolis. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition 13 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap — including its comprehensive urban expansion, the Mitch Daniels School of Business, Purdue Computes and the One Health initiative — at https://www.purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives.