Trustees ratify named headship, approve degree program to support Purdue Computes initiative

HAMMOND, Ind. — To support Purdue Computes — an initiative emphasizing four key pillars of Purdue’s extensive technological and computational environment — the university’s Board of Trustees on Friday (April 5) ratified a named headship and approved a degree program.

Milind Kulkarni will assume the newly ratified named headship as the Michael and Katherine Birck Head of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Kulkarni has been a professor in Purdue’s Elmore Family School of Electrical and Computer Engineering since 2009 and currently serves as its head, as well as the academic lead for the Robert H. Buckman College of Engineering Online Education Program. His research is focused on programming languages, compilers and systems. More specifically, he is interested in various language features, compiler techniques and run-time system support that will be necessary to unlock the potential of emerging, complex computation platforms such as multicore processors, heterogeneous architectures, sensor networks and distributed systems.

His awards and honors include a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, a U.S. Department of Energy Early Career Research Program award, a National Science Foundation CAREER award and several Purdue Seed for Success awards. Kulkarni has also received several teaching excellence awards, including the Charles B. Murphy Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award, Purdue’s highest honor for teaching. He has been named a University Faculty Scholar and is featured in Purdue’s 2023 Book of Great Teachers. He is an IEEE senior member and Association for Computing Machinery distinguished member. Kulkarni is also one of the founding members of the Center for Programming Principles and Software Systems, is a member of the Purdue Programming Languages Research group and is an affiliate of the Center for Resilient Infrastructures, Systems and Processes.

Trustees approved a Master of Science degree in data science, which will be offered fully online through the Purdue West Lafayette campus and supported administratively by Purdue University Online, beginning with the spring 2025 semester. This interdisciplinary program is designed to meet the needs of industry-aligned data scientists and working professionals looking to open new pathways in the in-demand and growing data science career field. Students will learn cutting-edge techniques, technologies and applications for data science using real-world data sets and by working in teams on industry-provided projects through The Data Mine. Students will be able to tailor their degree by selecting from an industry-aligned certificate pathway. Initial certificate options will include digital humanities; spatial data science; managing information technology projects; information technology business analysis; applied data analytics; government, policy, nonprofit and pharmaceutical data science; and smart manufacturing.

In other action, trustees:

• Approved renaming and redesignating the Graduate School as the Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Scholars, effective July 1. The intent of this transformation is to better support graduate and professional programs at department, college and university levels, where Purdue’s commitment for advanced degrees remains focused on student success. More resources will continue to be devoted to students, and processes will be streamlined to ease student life as graduate programs at Purdue grow.
• Approved the merger of the Division of Construction Engineering and Management and the Lyles School of Civil Engineering under the redesignated name of the Lyles School of Civil and Construction Engineering, effective July 1.
• Awarded a posthumous Master of Science degree in construction management technology to Ha Kyun (Jason) Ju, from Purdue West Lafayette.
• Approved resolutions of appreciation for friends of the university who recently contributed $1 million or more to Purdue. Those are: 

– Theresa and George Adams, to support the Lyles School of Civil Engineering.

– Overbeck Family Foundation, to support the College of Agriculture.

– David and Margaret Crow, to support the Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business.

– The estate of Edward Dorsey Jr. (d. 2022), to support the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

– Gaylor Electric, to support Intercollegiate Athletics.

– John and Lisbeth Kling, to support Purdue University.

– Shaun and Traci O’Connor, to support the Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business.

– Robert and Karen Thompson, to support the College of Agriculture.

• Approved the naming of the Overbeck Controlled Environment Agriculture Facility at Purdue University. The Overbeck Family Foundation leadership gift will cover the purchase of two Freight Farms containers and provide essential support for installation improvements and utility upgrades. This support will optimize the utilization of these resources for learning, discovery and engagement both on campus and beyond.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a public research institution demonstrating excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities and with two colleges in the top four in the United States, Purdue discovers and disseminates knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 105,000 students study at Purdue across modalities and locations, including nearly 50,000 in person on the West Lafayette campus. 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 first comprehensive urban campus in Indianapolis, the new Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business, and Purdue Computes — at https://www.purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives.