2022 IMPACT REPORT

Alumni Clubs // Our regional clubs connect alumni, friends, and fans throughout the United States. These clubs create programming and experiences that enhance engagement in a variety of ways:
+ Social
+ Professional
+ Intellectual
+ Service
+ Scholarships and Student Recruitment

Through nearly 80 clubs, we reached more than 350,000 alumni.

In the last year, our clubs hosted more than 250 events and welcomed new groups in New Mexico, Baltimore, Huntsville, Fresno, Central New York, and Salt Lake City. Through the support of our alumni club members, we were able to award 75 scholarships totaling over $247,000.

Affinity Networks // Our affinity networks connect like-minded Boilermakers around a central purpose, mission, background, or activity beyond class affiliation, school, or regional proximity. Shared interests within the Purdue family are at the heart of these networks.

We added three new affinity networks in 2021–22, and, with the help of our volunteer leaders, organized more than 20 events that reached thousands of Purdue alumni.

Through Purdue partnerships, we created impactful programming that engaged a wide variety of alumni audiences. Popular events included alumni activities during Grand Prix Race 65; dinners in Indianapolis and Lake County that encouraged Black students to apply to Purdue; Cocktails and Conversation, a virtual Purdue Women’s Network series that connected our incredible alumnae with some of the University’s most inspiring women; and our very first Day of Unity, a free event designed to share various nuances of cultural identity through authentic alumni stories.

Investing in the Future // A Purdue for Life affinity network, the Purdue Women’s Network inspires women to recognize their individual and collective power to motivate, uplift, and connect with students, alumnae, and friends of Purdue. Harnessing the potential of every Purdue alumnae and friend, the Purdue Women’s Network endows scholarships for undergraduate women students to foster their success through their time at Purdue and beyond.

“I’ve never been the person to receive a scholarship, so the fact that I was chosen for this scholarship—I didn’t even apply—was so affirming. All of a sudden, there were people who wanted to know my story. I’m just really grateful.” —Hannah Majewski // 2021 Purdue Women’s Network Scholarship Recipient

International Engagement and Alumni Travel // Purdue graduates make their mark—and show their Purdue pride—all over the world. At the Purdue for Life Foundation, we are dedicated to helping alumni explore, discover, and stay connected no matter where they want to go or where they choose to live.

Although COVID-19 restrictions meant fewer travel opportunities, we still hosted nearly 300 alumni travelers in the past year. International alumni-engagement activities resumed, including the India-Purdue Collaborative Lecture Series in Delhi and Chennai. Additionally, we hosted several international alumni receptions, bringing together alumni travelers and local alumni in cities around the world.

With a revamped website, the launch of an annual mailer, and a new travel email digest sent to 85,000 alumni every month, travel communications reach more alumni than ever before. Our alumni enjoy making connections with other Boilermaker travelers on their adventures, and our program has raised nearly $100,000 that directly supports other Purdue for Life programs.

Lifelong Learning // We believe that learning doesn’t come to an end once you have your diploma in hand. It’s a lifelong process, and the Purdue for Life Foundation is the home for personal and professional learning delivered beyond Purdue’s campus. Our lifelong learning programs allow alumni, friends, and fans the opportunity to grow, achieve, and engage with the larger Purdue family in person or online.

Our efforts to increase lifelong learning offerings have led to the creation of new partnerships with Purdue University and its affiliates as well as a redesigned website and the launch of a new email digest, which reaches more than 300,000 alumni every month.

Through our partnerships with Purdue Online, Purdue Global, Purdue Federal Credit Union, the John Martinson Honors College, and community organizations, more than 500 alumni have participated in free and low-cost webinars, workshops, and online classes in the past six months. Popular programs include Purdue Online courses in American Sign Language, data storytelling, and wine appreciation; first-time homebuyer workshops; and a livestream of Purdue’s Presidential Lecture Series.

Volunteerism // Volunteerism is an essential component of our mission, and we encourage all alumni, friends, and fans of Purdue to volunteer in ways that are meaningful to them.

Volunteering events give our alumni opportunities to stay connected with Purdue, other Boilermakers, and their own communities. Our inaugural Purdue Day of Service was held October 29 on the West Lafayette campus in support of the 1869 Tree Planting Master Plan. The event reinforced Purdue’s standing as an Arbor Day Foundation Tree Campus Higher Education institution, an honor the University has held since 2009.

In one day, 111 volunteers:
Planted 82 trees + Cleaned and mulched the entire Horticulture Park + Saved Purdue Physical Facilities staff two weeks of effort

This year, we relaunched Purdue Ties—the University’s premier networking and mentoring platform. More than 10,500 Boilermakers have joined this virtual community to post updates, share resources, request professional development help, and browse job postings. Within the platform, users can connect via mentorship, and approximately 3,000 of our members have expressed a willingness to mentor students and other alumni.

Student and Recent Graduate Programs // We prepare students for life after college by connecting them to alumni for mentoring and professional develop­ment and by organizing events that mirror the alumni engagement experience. Our signature student program is PASE, the Purdue Alumni Student Experience, which offers exclusive discounts, gear, and programming for a one-time fee.

This year, PASE hosted its eighth Mock Career Fair and welcomed 20 alumni volunteers who helped prepare more than 300 students for in-person career fairs.

PASE set a record with 2,406 new members over the past year. With 9,000 members in total, it continues to be the largest student organization at Purdue University.

We are dedicated to ensuring that all recent Purdue graduates are provided with an ever-evolving roster of programs that maximize their potential as job candidates and offer social opportunities that enhance the alumni experience.

Industry Partnerships // The Office of Industry Partnerships assumed responsibility and oversight for all academic-to-business partnerships for Purdue Global and Purdue Online. With the help of alumni and friends, we have built mutually beneficial relationships campuswide that encompass talent, research, continuing education, and more. Beyond campus, key external partners include Amazon, Eli Lilly, Rolls-Royce, Accenture, Bayer Crop Science, Elanco, Wabash, and Dow Chemical.

Retirement and Alumni Living // Alumni, friends, and fans have the opportunity to be a part of the growing neighborhood at Purdue’s Discovery Park District. Located at the edge of Purdue’s West Lafayette campus, Source offers luxurious two- and three-bedroom condos and provides alumni with a tight-knit community of innovation and togetherness. Single-family homes, townhomes, and apartments are also available.

This area is quickly transforming the face of Purdue. Along with various cutting-edge research facilities, future plans for the Discovery Park District include a hospital, retirement facility, advanced research and development facilities, restaurants, nature trails, and a vintage barn that will serve as a brewery, distillery, and events center.