INDIANAPOLIS — Purdue University Board of Trustees Chairman Michael Berghoff announced Friday (Oct. 4) that he will retire from the Purdue Board of Trustees effective January 1, 2025, after more than 15 years on the board.
Mr. Berghoff, who graduated from Purdue University in 1985 with a bachelor’s degree in industrial management, was appointed to Purdue’s Board of Trustees in 2009 and has served as Board Chair since July 2015. As Chair of the Board, Mr. Berghoff has provided critical governance in guiding the University through unprecedented growth and success while managing important issues. Higher education settings are operating during a global pandemic.
In announcing his plans at a board meeting Friday (Oct. 4) in Indianapolis, Berghoff said: This experience changed my life. If I can make a difference, I hope I can help establish Purdue as one of the most important public universities in the nation. This is a university that students, alumni, faculty and staff are proud to call their own. We look forward to seeing your fellow Trustees continue their commitment to excellence. Let’s go boiler! ”
During Mr. Berghoff’s tenure, enrollment, national and global rankings, funding, research advances, and partnerships all increased significantly. Two presidents, several deans, key administrators, and numerous faculty members have joined the university and helped enhance Purdue’s reputation and establish it as one of the world’s top institutions of higher education.
“From his days as a student leader and student-athlete, through his successful career as an entrepreneur and business leader, and especially through his years of outstanding service as a trustee for 15 years, President Berghoff has always shined in gold and black. and served as Chairman of the Board for nine years,” said Chairman Moon Chan. “His deep passion and total dedication to Purdue is matched by his tremendous leadership impact on his alma mater. I have had the unique opportunity to work closely with Mike, especially since the summer of 2022. It was a real pleasure and I witnessed firsthand his strategic thinking, team building, energetic work ethic, and self-deprecating humor that helps him put his thoughtful deliberations into action. Execution. Purdue’s stability and success over the past many years is rooted in the leadership of not only the management team, but also the Board of Trustees and the Board of Trustees. Mike has Purdue’s best interests at heart at every moment. , pouring his heart out to Purdue every moment. Our university is blessed to have Mike Berghoff as one of the greatest Boilermakers of all time.”
On September 22, 2018, Berghoff (left) and Mitch Berghoff announced a $30 million donation from the Bruce and Beth White Foundation and the Dean Barbara White Foundation to fund renovations to the Union Club Hotel. Mr. Daniels (Purdue University photo)
As a trustee, Berghoff chaired the search committee that selected Mitch Daniels as the university’s 12th president in 2012. He worked closely with Daniels throughout the decade she served as president.
“I have been trying for days to concisely summarize the tremendous contribution that Mike Berghoff has made to Purdue’s success during his time as Chairman of the Board,” said Chairman Emeritus Daniels. “It’s beyond me. Its record is too vast. While much of American higher education is struggling financially and reputationally, Purdue is a shining exception. The main reason is its board of directors. During his tenure, Mike’s leadership has been essential to the board’s unique and outstanding performance, as he has thought strategically and led his fellow board members to realize that strategy. His understated humor can sometimes overshadow the seriousness and depth of thought he brings to every aspect of the Trusteeship, but he is fortunate to be his chairman. Those of us who have had the privilege of working for him know him to be a uniquely insightful man and one of the most dedicated and selfless Boilermakers in all of Boiler Nation.
“My years at Purdue have been marked by a long series of blessings, but none that I value more than a partnership with the best president that I or our university could possibly have hoped for; Nothing could have meant more to Purdue’s progress.”
In an interview with Purdue alumni when he was elected president in 2015, Berghoff said, “I want to do everything I can to make Purdue one of the most desired places to learn, live, and work.” “I would like to strengthen our support for Purdue graduates,” he said. Our campus community knows that this is a place where excellence is expected in everything we do. ”
Under his leadership, Purdue has achieved numerous successes. among them:
Launching bold initiatives through Purdue Moves in 2013, Purdue’s Next Moves in 2021, and Purdue Computes and Purdue One Health in 2023 and 2024 Acquisition and launch of Purdue Global, Purdue’s online university for working adults Comprehensive marketing Creating a plan Purdue’s expansion to Indianapolis begins; Significant new partnerships with Rolls-Royce, Saab, Schweitzer Engineering Lab, and SK Hynix; Return of commercial aviation service and plans for a new terminal at Purdue University Airport; Innovation and Commerce; Record-breaking activity, record funding, and significant physical plant growth in West Lafayette, throughout Indiana, and beyond.
These and other achievements were realized during Purdue’s unprecedented 13-year tuition freeze, which runs through 2025-26.
Mr. Berghoff (third from right) with trustees Mark Gee, Joan Brouillette, and Gary Lehman. Moon Chan. Trustee Michael Klipsch. June 14, 2023: President Patrick Wolff signs an agreement to establish Purdue University in Indianapolis. (Purdue University photo)
During his tenure on the board, Mr. Berghoff served as Purdue Athletics liaison, chaired the Purdue Global Board of Directors, chaired the Physical Facilities Committee, chaired the 2012 Presidential Search Committee, and served as the 2016 Intercollegiate Athletics Chair. Served as chair of the athletic director search committee. Member of the Purdue Research Foundation Board of Directors and the Purdue Fort Wayne Transition Team. He drove the design and creation of the university’s master plan, which will lead to student success corridors, pedestrian walkways, and a new gateway to Purdue’s main campus.
Gary Lehman, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors, said: He has led the university to the level we aspired to achieve 10 years ago. He will be missed, but his commitment to supporting Purdue will always be there. ”
Mr. Berghoff is the founder and president of Lenex Steel, the region’s largest steel processing company headquartered in Indianapolis. Prior to starting Lenex, he held management positions at Haden Construction in Detroit. Broad, Vogt & Kont, a Detroit steel manufacturing company. and Ferguson Steele of Indianapolis. As a student at Purdue, Berghoff played on the football team and served as president of the Purdue Student Publishing Foundation and president of the Theta Chi fraternity. He has served as president of the Purdue Theta Chi Alumni Corporation, president of St. Simon the Apostle Parish, member and president of the Cathedral High School Board of Directors, and holds many leadership positions in the community and professional organizations. I have held various positions. Number of directors of young president organizations. He currently serves on the Indiana Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors.
Following the announcement of Mr. Berghoff’s retirement, the Board of Directors elected Mr. Lehman as the next Chairman and Mr. Mike Klipsch as the next Vice Chairman, effective January 1, 2025.
About Purdue University
Purdue University is a public research institution that exemplifies excellence at scale. Ranked among the top 10 public universities and two in the nation’s top four, Purdue discovers and disseminates knowledge at a quality and scale second to none. More than 105,000 students study in a variety of ways and locations at Purdue, including nearly 50,000 students who study in person at our West Lafayette campus. With a focus on affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition for the 13th consecutive year. Learn how Purdue continues its relentless pursuit of the next big leap, including Indianapolis’ first integrated urban campus, the Mitch Daniels School of Business, Purdue Computes, and the One Health Initiative. Visit https://www.purdue.edu/. President/Strategic Initiatives.
