Purdue trustees ratify faculty positions, approve new degree program, award posthumous degree

Dennis Lin

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The Purdue University Board of Trustees on Friday (Dec. 4) ratified two faculty positions, approved a new degree program and awarded a posthumous bachelor’s degree. Trustees also issued resolutions of appreciation for friends of the university.

The ratified faculty positions are Dennis Lin as a Distinguished Professor of Statistics at Purdue West Lafayette and Michelle Drouin as the Jack W. Schrey Professor of Psychology at Purdue Fort Wayne.

Lin has served as head of the statistics department in the College of Science since July. He came to Purdue from Penn State University, where he was a University Distinguished Professor of supply chain and statistics. Lin is an internationally renowned expert in experimental design and has made seminal contributions to the theory and practice of experimental design, particularly in the areas of supersaturated designs. Lin has won several prestigious awards from the American Society of Quality, and he delivered the 2020 Deming Lecture, established by the American Statistical Association – the major professional meeting for statisticians worldwide. He is an elected Fellow of the Institute for Mathematical Statistics, the American Society of Quality, Royal Statistical Society, International Statistical Institute and the American Statistical Association.

Michelle Drouin

Drouin is an internationally recognized scholar in the fields of intimate partner relationships, technology use and forensic psychology. Since joining the Fort Wayne faculty in 2006, she has distinguished herself as a teacher, researcher and scholar of teaching and learning. Drouin has published more than 70 peer-reviewed papers and eight book chapters and has presented 93 papers or posters at regional, national and international conferences. She is frequently interviewed for her expertise by media outlets, and has been a consultant or expert witness for state trials and courts martial for the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard. Drouin has mentored more than 150 student research assistants through various activities, from data collection to analysis to preparing research for publication. Additionally, Drouin is a part-time senior research scientist for Parkview Health.

In other action, the board approved a Secondary STEM Education (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) with initial licensure as part of the Master of Science degree in Graduate Studies. This new major, which will be offered online, includes coursework to meet the requirements for three program components: Indiana initial teaching licensure in secondary (grades 5-12) science or mathematics; a master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction, STEM Concentration; and the K-12 Integrated STEM Education Graduate Certificate.

Trustees awarded a posthumous Bachelor of Arts degree in biology from the Purdue School of Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis to Abigail Sue Wood. Deceased students who have earned at least 85% of their credit-hour requirements and satisfied most of the requirements for a major may be nominated for a posthumous degree.

Additionally, the board approved resolutions of appreciation for those who recently contributed $1 million or more to the university. Appreciation goes to Leslie and Stephen Braun, to support the College of Health and Human Sciences; the Douglas and Maria DeVos Foundation, to support Intercollegiate Athletics; Leo Millstein and Linda Finkelman, to support the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics; Lilly Endowment Inc., to support university initiatives; Ed and Bea Schweitzer, to support Purdue Polytechnic High School; and two anonymous gifts, one to support the College of Veterinary Medicine and one to support the Purdue Polytechnic Institute.

Matthew Lynall

In other action, trustees approved the appointment of Matthew Lynall as the Avrum and Joyce Gray Director of the Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship. This directorship will provide leadership in support of commercialization and entrepreneurship at Purdue.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a top public research institution developing practical solutions to today’s toughest challenges. Ranked the No. 5 Most Innovative University in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, Purdue delivers world-changing research and out-of-this-world discovery. Committed to hands-on and online, real-world learning, Purdue offers a transformative education to all. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue has frozen tuition and most fees at 2012-13 levels, enabling more students than ever to graduate debt-free. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap at purdue.edu.

Sources: Jay Akridge, akridge@purdue.edu

Theresa Mayer, tsmayer@purdue.edu

April Heady, ADHeaddy@prf.org

Dennis Lin, dkjlin@purdue.edu

Michelle Drouin, mdrouin@purdue.edu 

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