Purdue University breaks ground on Academic Success Building in Indianapolis

INDIANAPOLIS — Gathering with city and state leaders and dignitaries in downtown Indianapolis on Wednesday (April 2), Purdue University celebrated the groundbreaking for its new Academic Success Building. The ceremony held at the Indiana Historical Society, just across the street from Purdue’s expansion in the capital city, marked the official start of construction for the 248,000-square-foot redbrick building at the corner of Michigan and West streets.

“Today we are writing history together,” said Purdue President Mung Chiang. “Today is a day of appreciation: to the leaders of our state and the business and civic communities. Today is a day of commitment: Boilermakers bringing the totality of Purdue to the totality of Indianapolis. Today is a day of stability and growth, as Purdue advances excellence at scale with affordability; co-creates jobs, workforce and innovation; and builds out America’s Hard-Tech Corridor between Indianapolis and West Lafayette.” 

Indiana Gov. Mike Braun; Rodric Bray, president pro tempore of the Indiana Senate; and Todd Huston, speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives; and Katie Jenner, Indiana secretary of education, were among the special guest speakers and leaders in attendance for the ceremony, which celebrated the future centerpiece of Purdue’s presence in Indianapolis.

“Bringing your university to this city as a stand-alone is what our state is about,” Braun said. “You are going to make it logistically easier for our own kids to be able to get one of the best educations you can get anywhere in the world, not just the U.S. This is going to be one of the mechanisms of how we keep our own kids in our own state, and the more we do that, the better it is going to be for everyone else.”

The 15-story Academic Success Building will include classrooms, laboratories, dining and housing for Purdue faculty, students and staff, as well as space for community and local high schools’ use. The architecture captures both the look and feel of Purdue University, and the facility will have the ability to evolve with the demands of experiential education.

“The building is going to change the landscape not only because of the appearance, but it is going to be a testimony to the state of Indiana and what it represents: It is a towering example of how innovative education should be done today,” said Gary Lehman, chairman of Purdue’s Board of Trustees. “It will be the heartbeat for the Purdue presence in Indianapolis.”

Set to be completed in May 2027, the building will be a cutting-edge hub for students to gain hands-on training, connect with corporate partners and engage with the surrounding Indianapolis community. It is the continuation of a vision that began with the August 2022 announcement that Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) would be splitting into two separate universities. That resolution was formalized in June 2023, and Purdue University in Indianapolis officially launched this past July.

Besides expanding its footprint downtown with the Academic Success Building, Purdue has already established physical presences throughout Indianapolis, including Purdue Motorsports and the Ray Ewry Sports Engineering Center, housed at Dallara’s U.S. headquarters in Speedway; the Accessible Precision Audiology Research Center and Manufacturing and Materials Research Laboratories locations at 16 Tech Innovation District; Mitch Daniels School of Business Executive Education programs at High Alpha in the Bottleworks District; and the planned One Health Innovation District near the future Elanco global headquarters on the western edge of the White River.

About Purdue University in Indianapolis

Purdue University in Indianapolis is a fully integrated expansion of West Lafayette, extending to central Indiana the academic rigor and accessible excellence for which Purdue is known. As the state’s only top 10 public university, most trusted university and most innovative university, Purdue is focused and committed to strengthening its presence in Indiana’s industrial and technological center. Purdue University in Indianapolis is creating an innovative, STEM-based collegiate experience by connecting future-ready Purdue students and faculty in Indianapolis to local businesses to accelerate Indiana’s STEM pipeline and tech ecosystem, fueling impact for our region and the world. Learn more at https://www.purdue.edu/indianapolis.