2022 IMPACT REPORT
The next giant leap starts here.
I’m Matt Folk, president and CEO of the Purdue for Life Foundation and a 1991 Electrical Engineering graduate. I’m pleased to welcome you to our 2022 impact report. I’m a lifelong fan of our University, a life member of the Purdue Alumni Association, and a longtime member of President’s Council and the John Purdue Club.
Purdue for Life helps people who love Purdue University stay connected, get involved, and give back.
Thank you to everyone—alumni, faculty, staff, retirees, students, parents and families, friends, and fans—for helping Purdue set a new record with philanthropic support this year. Talk about a giant leap!
Purdue for Life is the cornerstone for engagement, development, and stewardship at Purdue. We deepen alumni ties, drive and coordinate all alumni-related activities across the Purdue family’s post-graduation lives, and work with alumni and friends to garner support for the University. We advance the innovation, achievement, and growth of Purdue, including the important work underway on the Purdue Northwest and Purdue Fort Wayne campuses and through Purdue Global and the Purdue Polytechnic High Schools.
Alumni programming, lifelong learning, clubs and networks, President’s Council, the John Purdue Club, the Office of Industry Partnerships, on-campus alumni living opportunities—and much more—are brought to you by the Purdue for Life Foundation.
Thanks to the generous support and personal involvement of alumni, friends, and fans from around the globe, we are strengthening Purdue’s reputation in teaching and research while remaining affordable and accessible to brilliant young minds.
Thank you, and Boiler Up!
Matt Folk
President and CEO, Purdue for Life Foundation
Vice President of University Development and Alumni Engagement, Purdue University
I’m Matt Folk, president and CEO of the Purdue for Life Foundation and a 1991 Electrical Engineering graduate. I’m pleased to welcome you to our 2022 impact report. I’m a lifelong fan of our University, a life member of the Purdue Alumni Association, and a longtime member of President’s Council and the John Purdue Club.
Purdue for Life helps people who love Purdue University stay connected, get involved, and give back.
Thank you to everyone—alumni, faculty, staff, retirees, students, parents and families, friends, and fans—for helping Purdue set a new record with philanthropic support this year. Talk about a giant leap!
Purdue for Life is the cornerstone for engagement, development, and stewardship at Purdue. We deepen alumni ties, drive and coordinate all alumni-related activities across the Purdue family’s post-graduation lives, and work with alumni and friends to garner support for the University. We advance the innovation, achievement, and growth of Purdue, including the important work underway on the Purdue Northwest and Purdue Fort Wayne campuses and through Purdue Global and the Purdue Polytechnic High Schools.
Alumni programming, lifelong learning, clubs and networks, President’s Council, the John Purdue Club, the Office of Industry Partnerships, on-campus alumni living opportunities—and much more—are brought to you by the Purdue for Life Foundation.
Thanks to the generous support and personal involvement of alumni, friends, and fans from around the globe, we are strengthening Purdue’s reputation in teaching and research while remaining affordable and accessible to brilliant young minds.
Thank you, and Boiler Up!
Matt Folk
President and CEO, Purdue for Life Foundation
Vice President of University Development and Alumni Engagement, Purdue University
SMALL STEPS
How we got here.
In March 2019, Purdue President Mitch Daniels formed the Purdue for Life investigation committee, made up of Purdue alumni and employees. The committee’s goal was to recommend a vision and implementation plan for advancing Purdue University by increasing a sense of value among alumni in their continued association with the University.
In 2020, after study, discussion, and visits to many universities across the United States, the committee proposed an integrated engagement and advancement model to President Daniels and the Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees and the Purdue Alumni Association Board of Directors approved that proposal, and the Purdue for Life Foundation was announced on March 11, 2020.
The new Purdue for Life model combined engagement and fundraising activities, streamlined the Purdue experience for alumni and donors—through special events and travel opportunities offered, email and print communications received, and more—and provided a more customized approach when connecting alumni and friends with the University.
“Our Purdue graduates and friends number in the hundreds of thousands. Purdue for Life will lead us to new connections and better engagement with this entire alumni universe. In a world of continuous learning, online education, and networking, the Purdue experience must become not four years but literally lifelong.” —President Daniels
Matt Folk (ECE’91), who led the Purdue for Life investigation committee, was appointed the president and CEO of the Purdue for Life Foundation. Greg Kapp (PNW’82) was named vice president of development, and Jillian Henry (T’04) was named vice president of engagement.
On April 1, 2021, the Purdue Alumni Association entered into a formal agreement with the Purdue for Life Foundation, acknowledging that the Foundation would plan and implement alumni engagement activities on behalf of the association, and the Purdue Alumni Association staff joined the Purdue for Life Foundation as employees. The Purdue Alumni Association remains an independently financed nonprofit organization that continues with its core function of managing the election of three alumni trustees for the Purdue University Board of Trustees in accordance with Indiana state statutes.
“Our goal is to strengthen ties both internally and externally, continuing our efforts to come together as one Purdue. Working alongside incredibly talented people, we see a future of improved events, streamlined communication, lifelong learning opportunities for our Purdue alumni family, and much, much more.” —Matt Folk
STAY CONNECTED
We offer exciting ways for alumni, friends, and fans to show their love for the old gold and black.
LET’S PARTY
Focusing on all units throughout the Purdue for Life Foundation and providing assistance for Purdue University events, our special events team administers the efficient communication and coordination of event calendaring, processes, and protocols.
In the fall of 2021, we began hosting in-person events in a safe and meaningful way, making Purdue one of the only universities nationwide to accomplish this on a large scale for alumni and donor gatherings. The number of event attendees ranged from 10 to more than 5,000.
Boilermaker Ball // The 2022 Boilermaker Ball was a bewitching, bold, and brilliant spectacular, raising more than $125,000 for the Purdue Scholarship Fund.
Purdue @ Wrigley Field // More than 750 Boilermakers joined the Purdue for Life Foundation’s tailgate at the Cubby Bear in Wrigleyville, taking over Chicago with Purdue pride before the football team took on Northwestern.
2022 Purdue Center for Cancer Research Challenge 5K Run/Walk // Thanks to the generous support of donors, sponsors, and hundreds of participants, the 2022 Challenge 5K Run/Walk raised more than $75,000 for cancer research at Purdue.
Memories on the Mall // Nearly 200 multicultural and international Purdue students and friends attended our Memories on the Mall celebration, an elegant outdoor dinner to celebrate their graduation.
YOU’VE GOT MAIL
The Purdue for Life vision includes streamlining communications so we can shine a more direct light on exciting ways to engage with Purdue—such as our lifelong learning and travel email digests—and encourage support through private giving.
Our investments in customer relationship management technology allow alumni and friends to stay connected to Purdue in ways that work for them. Through our email preference center, individuals can tailor communications to their interests, opting in and out of specific categories.
YOU’RE ALWAYS WELCOME
Located in Room 102 of Stewart Center—right in the heart of campus—the Boilermaker Station Welcome Center functions as the main Purdue hub for welcoming alumni, students, faculty, staff, guests, friends, and fans, while also serving as the launching point for all admissions tours.
We welcomed more than 38,000 visitors in 2021!
