IU, Purdue sign off on realignment that promises growth for both schools in Indianapolis

Trustees from Indiana University and Purdue University approved an agreement Wednesday that will formally separate IUPUI into two independent urban campuses in Indianapolis.

The arrangement formalizes the creation of Indiana University Indianapolis, the new name for IU’s existing campus in Indianapolis, and Purdue University in Indianapolis, which will expand its footprint downtown and open other Indianapolis locations.

The votes came 10 months after the two institutions signed a memorandum of understanding in which they agreed to retire the IUPUI name, rebrand the 536-acre campus and operate independently in the state’s capital city.

As part of the transition, most academic programs at IUPUI will transition to IU Indianapolis. Purdue will take on existing engineering, computer science and technology programs now at IUPUI and students will receive Purdue West Lafayette degrees.

IU plans to expand and renovate research and laboratory facilities to support an increase in science, technology, engineering and mathematics—or STEM—faculty as well as increase capacity for its nursing programs and double enrollment at the Luddy School of Informatics, Computing and Engineering in Indianapolis. Those efforts are central to the university’s previously announced SciTech Corridor, to be located at Michigan and West Streets.

Purdue has plans for a 28-acre campus footprint on the north side of the current IUPUI campus that will be in addition to the existing IUPUI Engineering & Technology buildings, which Purdue will continue to use. The addition could include five buildings, and Purdue plans to develop three other locations in Indianapolis.

Purdue plans to introduce programs from other colleges and departments in West Lafayette—including the Mitch Daniels School of Business—to its Indianapolis operations.

Overall, Purdue anticipates growing its Indianapolis enrollment by more than 1,000 students and housing many together in a new residential building near their academic buildings.

Each university is expected to begin its separate operations by the 2024 fall semester.

Hundreds of people, including prominent public officials and business leaders, flooded the IUPUI Campus Center Atrium for a ceremony to commemorate the changes.

“This agreement will be a stepping stone for both Indiana University and Purdue University toward even greater possibilities for innovation and collaboration for our students in the city of Indianapolis,” IU President Pam Whitten said.

Purdue University President Mung Chiang said it was a “momentous day” for Indiana and the beginning of a new chapter for both institutions.

“Today propels the hard-tech corridor in America’s heartland—65 miles connecting the two campuses in Indianapolis and West Lafayette with the state’s LEAP innovation district at the midpoint,” Chiang said.

Several elected officials were in attendance, including Indiana Senate Pro Tem Rod Bray, House Speaker Todd Huston and Senate Appropriations Chair Ryan Mishler, along with Indianapolis Reps. Ed Delaney, Victoria Garcia Wilburn and Cherrish Pryor.

State lawmakers showed support for the realignment earlier this year by allocating $120 million in the state budget for IU to build a “school of science instructional and research building” and for Purdue to construct an “academic and student success building.”

Several Indianapolis leaders were also present, including Mayor Joe Hogsett, City-County Council President Vop Osili and Kristian Little Stricklen, president of the Madam Walker Legacy Center, which is located on the edge of the IUPUI campus. Jefferson Shreve, a former city-county councilor and Republican candidate for Indianapolis mayor, was also present.

Indiana Commerce Secretary Brad Chambers, who leads the Indiana Economic Development Corp., said “this day is going to empower the state’s economy for generations to come.”

“I would’ve swam across the Atlantic to get here for this awesome day,” said Chambers, who recently returned from an economic development trip in Europe.

Civic and business leaders at the event included Mitch Daniels, a former Indiana governor who served as Purdue’s president through the end of last year. He negotiated the IUPU split with Whitten last year before announcing his retirement.

IUPUI was established in 1969 after then-Mayor Richard Lugar expressed the need for Indianapolis to have a “great state university.” It began primarily as a commuter undergraduate school for students in Indianapolis, but the two institutions had been teaching classes in the capital city for years.

IU and Purdue would expand their reach in the coming decades, but IUPUI has struggled to increase enrollment and raise money. And Indianapolis is one of a few large American cities without what’s called an “R1 doctoral university,” known for high research activity.

The latter is in part because the IU School of Medicine, despite being located on the IUPUI campus, reports its research labs and funding numbers through IU Bloomington, which hurts IUPUI rankings.

IU and Purdue officials hope the rebranding effort can make the school a bigger player in the regional and national economy.

“The impact stemming from today’s events over the next 50 years will be truly extraordinary,” IU Board Chair Quinn Buckner said.