Laurel Weldon
Please join me in congratulating Laurel Weldon, distinguished professor of political science, who was named inaugural director of the Purdue Policy Research Institute (PPRI).
PPRI, formerly known as the Global Policy Research Institute (GPRI), is now a part of Discovery Park. Laurel was a key figure in the evolution of GPRI, chairing the presidential task force established for its development and serving as chair and co-chair (with Wally Tyner, the James and Lois Ackerman Professor of Agricultural Economics) of the Faculty Leadership Committee for GPRI from its inception until 2012.
Laurel, who specializes in public policy, has authored two books and co-edited the first Oxford Handbook on Politics and Gender. She is also a founding co-editor of the journal Politics, Groups, and Identities. She joined the Department of Political Science in 1999, and was the founding director of the Center for Research on Diversity and Inclusion. From 2013 to 2014, she served as interim vice provost for faculty affairs, and also served briefly as acting provost in 2014.
Congratulations, Professor Weldon!
David A. Reingold
Justin S. Morrill Dean
College of Liberal Arts