Catherine Murphy’s Retirement

Dear colleagues,

It is with gratitude and admiration that I announce the retirement of Dr. Catherine Murphy. After serving the students and other members of the faculty of Purdue University Northwest for the past 56 years, our beloved Dr. Murphy has decided to retire. Throughout her remarkable career, Dr. Murphy has been a pillar of our academic community.

Catherine Murphy came to what was then Purdue Calumet in 1968 at the rank of assistant professor, progressing through the ranks to full professor, and serving as dead for the Department of Mathematics, Computer Science and Statistics starting in 1983, serving for over 35 years. During this time she also served as interim dean of the College of Engineering, Mathematics and Science and later as associate dean of the College of Engineering and Science.

She was responsible for developing the department into a lively, friendly and collegial place to work, hiring all the department members for an extraordinarily long period of time. Her philosophy of leadership was clearly stated in one department meeting, when she said that her goal was to help the faculty do the best job they could. Her friendly and supportive demeanor was appreciated by all the members of the department, as well as those from outside the department with whom she worked.

In addition to being department head, she held a large number of other service roles in the university, including serving for many years as the head of academic program review.  The university, and especially the department, is a better place because of the service that Dr. Murphy has provided.

Please join me in extending our deepest appreciation to Dr. Murphy for her extraordinary service and dedication to the faculty, staff, and students of our institution.

Bruce W. Berdanier, Ph.D., PE, PS
Dean | College of Engineering and Sciences
Acting Head | School of Engineering