The Zou sisters initiated endless opportunities by learning to twirl

Good things take time — or a lot of ambition.  

Sisters Sara and Chellie Zou learned to twirl at age 17 to audition for roles as Purdue’s Silver Twins. Neither had ever picked up a baton but committed to an intense training regimen and a shared belief that they could make it happen. 

“Our strengths were perfect for it,” Chellie says. “We knew how to work together.” 

This chance to join the “All-American” Marching Band would open doors to unforgettable experiences and valuable connections.  

Becoming experts with batons in just a few short months, they secured their spots on the team of feature twirlers. Their college years consisted of prestigious performances and introductions to the people and places that would go on to shape their careers.  

“The friendships we formed during our time as the Silver Twins intertwine with all of our milestones — from career highlights to graduate degrees to long-distance moves,” Sara says.  

“Purdue has been so much more than only a place to us,” Chellie says. “It’s been a launchpad, a community and a lifelong network.”

Becoming part of a Purdue tradition  

Silver Twins have been a key part of the “All-American” Marching Band for decades. In 1960 identical twins Sharon and Karon Roeske auditioned to be performers. Then-director Al G. Wright is reported saying, “The chance of finding twins who are twirlers are a million to one, so I named them the ‘Silver Twins’ and put them on the field.” 

Since the Roeske sisters first performed, the tradition has evolved with every school year. Not all of the Silver Twins have actually been twins — there have been plenty of cases of two talented performers meeting for the first time at auditions.  

What never changes? An unparalleled level of excellence. The ability to perform in perfect synch is no simple feat, and most women who take on the role are recognized for their abilities on a national level, holding titles from countrywide competitions.  

Most have trained for years, but not all. The Zou sisters only picked up batons after learning about the possibility of becoming the university’s Silver Twins. A chance encounter between two family friends during the Zous’ birthday party sparked the idea.  

Their high school band director, Max Jones, sat at a table with one of their mother’s friends who came from a Purdue family. Jones was preparing to join Purdue as an assistant director for the “All-American” Marching Band. He learned more about the Silver Twins and relayed the information.  

Sara and Chellie didn’t know a lot about twirling, but they weren’t without a solid foundation for competing — they had been dancing since age 3, and Jones recognized their talents in the color guard.  

Committing to intense training with the goal of securing the spot, their hard work paid off and they became the Silver Twins in 2008.

Performing on campus and around the world 

At Purdue, Sara and Chellie leaned into their responsibilities as the Silver Twins and their knack for getting involved. Not only were they working toward their goals — they were also meeting other spirited Boilermakers who would go on to become lifelong connections.  

Other Purdue feature twirlers have been constant sources of support, even attending each other’s recent weddings. Golden Girl MerrieBeth (Cox) Carlson and Girl-in-Black Meg (Merdian) Stumpf have been their close friends since performing brought all of them together.  

Traveling with the “All-American” Marching Band gave them some of their most formative experiences. They were in New York to march in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Flying to Beijing, they were able to perform on the Great Wall of China while also seeing special audience members: their grandparents.  

“We visited our grandparents with our family every year and lived there for a year when we were 10 years old,” Chellie says. “But they had never seen us twirl until our performance with the band. It was really special.”  

As Boilermakers, they met alumni from all corners of the globe, including Neil Armstrong and Drew Brees. Attending events and representing the university helped them develop strong leadership and communication skills.  

They prioritized helping in any way they could within the College of Liberal Arts. Sara majored in political science and minored in Chinese and communication. Chellie majored in communication and minored in Chinese and psychology. They hosted the naming event for the Brian Lamb School of Communication before working for Purdue alum Lamb at C-SPAN, the public affairs TV network he founded in Washington, D.C.

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Setting the stage for success 

Everywhere the Zou sisters go, they meet Purdue alumni. Their decision to stay actively involved with the university only felt natural. “No matter where we are, there’s a band alum we can reach out to,” Sara says.  

In their jobs at C-SPAN after graduation, they were able to use connections they had made as students. They joined the Purdue alumni club in D.C., as well as where their next move took them — Boston, to attend graduate school at Harvard.  

After earning their master’s degrees in marketing management in 2018, Purdue connections brought them to Chicago. Chellie works as the senior manager of transformation at McDonald’s and is the president of the Purdue Alumni Club of Chicago. Sara works as the senior manager of community and market impact at United Airlines and recently finished her term as vice president of the Alumni Club. They are both members of the Purdue Libraries Dean’s Advisory Council.  

“We can get back to Purdue much easier now that we’re in Chicago,” Sara says. “We’re close to our family.” 

They make it a point to visit West Lafayette for two football games a season, plus a basketball game and spring visit. Being on campus is a reminder of all they’ve worked toward.  

“We’re grateful for the opportunities Purdue provided and the incredible people we met along the way,” Chellie says.

The alumni converted this 1996 Ford E-350 and have enjoyed over a decade of football games with it

What’s the best way to tow along everything you’ll need for a tailgate? Alumni Mark Rudicel and Adam Sheller have everything from a pull-out grill to an LED TV in their converted ambulance. When they started looking for the ultimate tailgate machine, they searched for bread trucks, fire trucks — anything out of the ordinary.

The ambulance has been the perfect choice. Along with using its many compartments, they enjoy the bonus of testing out lights and sirens. They designed a custom wrap that includes the lyrics to “Hail Purdue” plus a large depiction of The Boilermaker statue on the back.

As season ticket holders, Rudicel and Sheller are at most games with their families and friends. Raising an eye-catching flag off the corner of their rig makes it even easier to find in the tailgate lots.

Robert Cohen is one year out of college and running sound for ‘The Book of Mormon’

What’s it like to hit your career goals right after graduating? Robert Cohen is one of the rare people who knows that feeling. 

Cohen earned his degree in sound for the performing arts last year and immediately took on technical roles with touring productions like Disney On Ice and “The Book of Mormon.” 

When the Broadway tour for “The Book of Mormon” stops at Elliott Hall of Music on Oct. 2, Cohen will feel right at home. Here the College of Liberal Arts alum shares how his experiences at Purdue helped him find success in the field he loves.

Q: What inspired you to pursue theater? 

A: While I’ve never performed, I got involved in the technical side of theater in high school. It caught my attention because of how much freedom I could have learning. It was a space where I could explore and experiment, where I could try, fail and grow. Once something piques my interest, I want to understand as much of it as I can.

Q: What about college surprised you? 

A: There is an abundance of activities at Purdue. Campus has a club for everything under the sun. You don’t grasp the scale of it until you’re juggling an entirely full schedule and have to figure out when you’re going to eat lunch — that definitely happened a few times.  

The unexpected part is how small the campus felt. No matter where I went, I was met with familiar faces. Being a part of so many organizations made for a tight-knit community.  

Some friends and I started a club — Live Events and Productions (LEAP) — by sort of stumbling into it. Throughout my time working at Hall of Music Productions when I was a student, I had the chance to work on various Broadway tours, concerts and sporting events.  

However, the number of people needed for these roles was limited, so not everyone could participate in these exciting opportunities. Recognizing this, the summer before my senior year, my friends and I had several calls and began planning a club to connect other students with hands-on technical experience. This has grown to become LEAP and has been hosting trainings, concerts and other opportunities for anyone interested since then.

Q: What advice would you give a freshman just starting to earn their degree?

A: It’s no surprise that the biggest takeaway is to get involved. There’s so much to do, and you should go in head first. Fill your plate. I feel like I became more well-rounded because of the different skills I learned and connections I created.  

In the theater industry, things move quickly. You have to be ready to pick things up — new opportunities, new roles, new technology. Being able to adapt is huge. Learning new skills in college helps me with my life now, from working on a new soundboard to fixing gear under pressure.  

Being able to step into different environments and do your best is important. I get to travel the country now, seeing different cities and working with local crews. Every crew requires a different approach to coordinating.  

Traveling has been such a rewarding part of the job. During the Disney On Ice tour, we were in New Mexico and got to see the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. A few company members and I woke up at 3 a.m., drove from Sante Fe and saw the hot air balloons launched.  

We stood in the field and got to watch hundreds take off. Then we went back to Sante Fe and did three shows that day. Balancing the hard work with making the most of my free time has been worth it.

My experiences at Purdue led to this.

Robert Cohen

BA sound for the performing arts ’24

Q: When was your last “pinch me” moment? 

A: In between Disney On Ice and “The Book of Mormon,” I had the chance to work as monitor engineer for “Riverdance,” the Irish step dancing show. They needed someone to cover for about two weeks.  

I started with them at the Cadillac Palace Theatre in Chicago. Growing up, I would watch shows in that very theater. So when I walked out into the house of the theater before the show, it hit me. I’m living my dream already.  

I’m making a living doing what I love. When “The Book of Mormon” is at Purdue, it’ll be another one of those full-circle moments. Working shows in the venues I know so well as an audience member is surreal.

Q: What are you most excited for next?

A: When I was a senior in college, I sat down with a few of my mentors and professors and made a five-year plan. I’m a year out of college, and I’ve already hit it. I’m thrilled to be where I am.  

I love my work and getting to travel the country. After this tour, I’ll do whatever comes my way. There’s still so much to learn in the theater world and room to grow. It’d be cool to try the concert industry. It’s a whole different ballgame as far as technical skills and demands are concerned, but I’m eager to dive in.  

My experiences at Purdue led to this. Classes and clubs set me up for success, but the connections made the biggest difference. I’m glad that I could get involved in this industry so early and start building my career while I was in college.

Purdue volleyball coach Dave Shondell didn’t have a moment to waste.

In the brave new world of college athletics, student-athletes are more mobile than they have ever been. And immediately following the 2024 season and another NCAA Regional appearance, Shondell had to replace four players who had entered the transfer portal.

And he only had about 72 hours to do it. Six-foot-four middle blocker Lindsey Miller, who had played previously at USC and Notre Dame, was already committed as a grad transfer. Still, Shondell knew he needed some additional help on the front line, and in a hurry.

“I got busy and watched a lot of tape of players that I was familiar with, that I thought could play at this level,” says Shondell, who is in his 23rd season at Purdue and will record his 500th victory this season as the program’s all-time winningest coach.

So far, so good when evaluating the Boilermakers’ performance to date. Purdue has thus far proved naysayers with low expectations wrong, entering Big Ten play ranked 10th in the nation with wins over two top-15 teams: No. 15 Kansas and No. 10 SMU.

“We are playing well as a unit,” says Shondell, who has had led Purdue to an NCAA tournament appearance in 19 of his 22 years at the helm, including four trips to the regional finals.

Joining Miller in the five-player transfer class were a pair of 6-3 outside hitters, Akasha Anderson and Nataly Moravec, and another middle blocker, 6-1 junior Dior Charles. Anderson spent two years at Auburn before playing for Michigan State in 2024. Moravec had been at BYU and Iowa, and Charles at Wake Forest. The fifth addition was Bianka Lulić, also a 6-5 middle blocker, who had played previously at Miami (Florida).

“The good news is that the five that I talked to, and the five that I thought at the time that were still available, were the best fits for Purdue,” Shondell says. “We had to adjust and adjust quickly, but I credit my staff and returning players for keeping me focused, and for those kids for wanting to be at Purdue.”

In fact, Anderson, Lulić and Moravec never made an official — or unofficial — visit before making their decision, although Anderson had the familiarity all Big Ten opponents have with Purdue. At Michigan State, the outside hitter had experienced firsthand the “welcoming” atmosphere that was Holloway Gymnasium, Purdue’s home venue.

While the time accounts vary to when Anderson and Shondell connected — Anderson says it was five minutes after she entered the portal, while Shondell says it was about an hour — it doesn’t matter. By the next day, Anderson was committed.

Charles also chose Purdue without any previous knowledge of the university’s program, let alone the university itself. She, however, made a quick study of Shondell’s success and was eager to make the jump.

“I had never heard of Purdue before I entered the transfer portal,” says Charles, who is enrolled in the Mitch Daniels School of Business. “I did a lot of research and loved the legacy of Dave and his program. I am from (Los Angeles), so going to Indiana scared me a little bit, and meeting all those returning teammates and the standard set by the program was a little intimidating. However, it didn’t take long for everyone to make me feel at ease.”

And like the others, Charles was also impressed by the resources allocated to the program, especially the new Gelov Family Purdue Athlete Dining facility. “It’s my favorite building on campus,” says Charles with a laugh. “Everything here, from the academic support to the coaching staff, is welcoming.

“I never would have thought that schools of this level would even notice me. And so that little doubt that I had in myself, it’s just good to see it washed away now that I am at Purdue.”

And make no mistake, academics is a key piece of the puzzle. The five transfers entered the West Lafayette campus wanting to graduate or further their education. It was a priority for each, but also a challenge getting the academic credits aligned and moving in the right direction.

One of Anderson’s first questions to Shondell on that prompt, fateful phone call was whether she would be able to graduate on time. She plans to go pro in January, and she wants to be in position to get her degree in political science while pursuing a pro career.

“I found out quickly how nice it is to be at Purdue, where academics are taken so seriously,” says Anderson, or “Kash” as she is nicknamed. “My professors are very much bought into helping it all work for me.”

But she also noted a more “chill” attitude around the program — a word not often used when describing Shondell’s intense coaching nature.

“I was part of an intense top-25 program for two years (at Auburn), and when you think of a top-15 program like Purdue, you think it is hardcore,” says Anderson, who admits she ranks high on the intensity scale on the court. “While expectations at Purdue are sky high, and we want to go to the Final Four, it was refreshing to find that people are more laid back here and have a good time. I’ve discovered it is about balance and the experience of building relationships at Purdue as much as it is about winning.”

Meanwhile, Moravec’s journey to Purdue took many turns and a lot of patience and faith. She began her career at BYU and transferred to Iowa, where she was a regular in 2023. Yet she yearned for a more competitive program, and with an eye on the transfer portal, Moravec did not return to Iowa for her redshirt sophomore season. Instead, she made the trek to China — where she had connections, in large part because her mother is originally from there — and trained, while also taking online classes so she didn’t lose a year of eligibility.

Coming here (to Purdue) is the happiest I’ve ever been. These girls are amazing.

Nataly Moravec Redshirt sophomore outside hitter

In fact, after entering the portal last year, she had emailed Shondell expressing interest in the program, and as fate would have it, the Purdue coach remembered her email when room became available and connected with Moravec.

It was an experience that still evokes emotion for her.

“I have had a lot of challenges and difficulties in my college experience,” says Moravec, who chose economics as her academic path. “It has not been smooth.

“Yet coming here (to Purdue) is the happiest I’ve ever been. These girls are amazing. We have gotten to know each other really well, especially during the off-season, and they really just welcomed us with open arms. The returning players have taught us how to navigate the systems. The coaches embraced us, and I think that it’s been so special to be a part of that.”

Shondell believes, in time, things will settle down with the transfer portal, revenue sharing and NIL. Some form of normalcy is just around the corner. Yet, the experience has opened a new chapter for him as a coach.

And despite building a program known for player development and remarkable roster stability, Purdue hasn’t missed a beat. The self-proclaimed “old ball coach” has proven he can recruit talent wherever and whenever that may be.

“I plan to be around here for a while,” Shondell says. “There have been rough times, but I really love our team, and am so happy about how well our transfers have not only played, but have become part of the fabric of our program.

“We are fortunate at Purdue.”

Written by Alan Karpick, publisher of GoldandBlack.com

Elizabeth Saunders connected with her roots while getting involved at the Tumaini Innovation Center and staying with relatives

Halfway around the world, Elizabeth Saunders felt at home. 

Even though she had never been to Kenya before her research abroad program, the Purdue construction engineering student found a room full of new people comforting. 

During one of the first meetings for her research project, everyone at the table was talking about the curriculum — at the same time. The communication style wasn’t what’s standard in the U.S. It was like being at her family’s Thanksgiving table.  

For the last five days Saunders was in Kenya, she sat with her actual family. They were the dozens of people her mother had left when she immigrated to the U.S. decades ago. 

It was Saunders’ first time meeting them face-to-face. The instant security she felt is almost impossible to describe.  

“It all felt familiar,” she says. “I grew up around a lot of Kenyan women — my mom, my grandma, my aunt — and it felt like I was with them.” 

Researching abroad 

Kenya was Saunders’ second time overseas. She first heard about studying abroad from an advisor, Brandon Fulk, and went to New Zealand for the spring semester of her junior year.  

“I love to challenge myself and try new things just for the sake of having more experiences,” says Saunders, who grew up in Greenwood, Indiana. “I’d never traveled that far before and definitely wanted to do it again.” 

Saunders doesn’t hesitate to credit faculty and staff for sharing all sorts of opportunities. She was working at the Office of Future Engineers when her manager, Lindsay Elias, let her know about the six-week summer research opening in Kenya. The National Science Foundation-funded program was led by Purdue’s Jennifer DeBoer and Kirsten Davis along with San Franciso State University’s Stephanie Claussen with support from the School of Engineering Education and Global Engineering Programs and Partnerships. 

The research project took place at the Tumaini Innovation Center, where she worked with an engineering education team to support the teachers in improving their vocational school. They were able to optimize programs by interviewing students, teachers and employers about their goals.  

Interviews at the center were only the start of Saunders’ conversations in Kenya. After her mother helped coordinate plans over the phone with relatives, she was set to meet some of them in Eldoret (where the center is located) and stay with dozens in Nairobi.  

Meeting family 

Anyone who has tried to learn a new language knows how difficult it can be. Where most would hesitate, Saunders dove in — she had to learn Swahili to communicate with her family.   

An American cousin taking Swahili courses gave her tips. For four months, they’d touch base about once a week to go over common terms. When she arrived in Kenya, she told her research team she was trying to learn the language. Some of the teachers then spoke exclusively in Swahili to introduce her to as many words as possible. She also met with a Swahili teacher to round out the informal crash course.   

While those in Eldoret and younger cousins were fluent in English, most of the older generation only spoke Swahili. One aunt was limited in Swahili but used Kikuyu, a Bantu language found mainly in the central region of Kenya. Talking with that aunt was like playing a game of telephone with another relative translating for them.  

“It took five minutes to figure out ‘Would you like any tea?’” she says. “We made it work. It was part of being immersed in their lives.” 

They spent the majority of the time telling stories about relatives she knew, relatives she didn’t. Her family history became both clearer and more intricate than ever.  

“Everyone spoke so highly of my great-grandmother, and it made me miss her even though we never met,” she says.  

The ancestral connection ran deep. She happened to arrive in Nairobi on the anniversary of her great-grandmother’s death. And out of every seat in the house, she happened to favor the one right next to where her great-grandmother always sat.  

Having to leave was more difficult than she could have expected. In a way, it was going away from one home to return to another, and it gave new meaning to what a safe haven is.  

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Seeing what’s next 

It won’t be the last time Saunders sees her family. She’s already looking forward to the next visit. Now that she’s opened the door, her mom and siblings are also making travel plans.  

The next time she’s there, she’ll have graduated — she’s set to receive her degree in December 2025 and head into the construction engineering industry.  

She’s looking at specialized construction and how buildings can best serve community needs, from hospitals and government buildings to museums and shared spaces. She’s also interested in construction projects for developing countries, where humanitarian initiatives like water collection systems make a big impact. Above all, she wants to make people’s lives better.  

“An alum gave advice that you’re not doing anything if you’re not helping others,” she says. “I know the opportunities are out there for me.” 

An alum gave advice that you’re not doing anything if you’re not helping others.

Elizabeth SaunderS

Senior in construction engineering

Renovating a program takes setting high standards for everyone involved. Second-year Purdue soccer coach Richard Moodie wants the women who comprise his program to aim for the stars and to love the sport enough to make a career out of it.

Therefore, it is not surprising that 10 Boilermakers played soccer for high-level clubs over the summer to hone their skills and compete against the best available competition. Making money isn’t the objective, as typically it only covers expenses and not much else. Having access to worthy competition is key.

“I had exposure to a lot of good players from different schools, like Duke, UCF and Pepperdine,” says Megan Santa Cruz, a Washington State transfer who played for the Santa Clarita (Calif.) Blue Heat not far from her home in Burbank. “It was important for me to get exposure to a different style and keep my fitness level up.”

For Moodie, there is a risk of burning players out by playing too much; that is why placement is so important. The message is simple.

“Go, get your confidence. Go play, go and enjoy yourself,” is Moodie’s mantra when it comes to summer competition. “We are particular about where the kids go to play,” he says. “Are they in a good environment? Are they being looked after?

“Megan may be undersized for her position (the midfielder is 5-foot-4), but the data shows she can play with anybody. And she proves that on the pitch.”

Make no mistake, Moodie is a 21st-century data-driven coach who uses numbers at every turn.

For Allyssa Turner, a freshman defender who played at Wake FC in her home state of North Carolina, it was about getting exposure to new positions and new styles.

“I played center back, outside back, midfielder — a variety of positions,” says Turner. “At this stage of my career, it is important to work on different situations and try different things in games that matter, but don’t matter as much as our matches at Purdue.”

Moodie likes what he sees in Turner and thinks the summer experience really helped her.

“I couldn’t tell you if she is left-footed or right-footed,” Moodie says. “She has excellent ball skills, despite an early season injury getting her off to a slow start. She’s got great energy, and it’s fun to be around her.”

Emily Edwards, in her second season as the Boilermakers’ goalie after transferring from Pitt, was able to take advantage of the proximity to campus while playing not far from West Lafayette for the Indy Eleven.

“The ability to play on a team that’s a high level was great,” Edwards says. “But also being close enough to Purdue, that really allowed me to not only develop my craft soccer-wise, but I was also able to stay here on campus and spend time in the weight room and really hone in on some of the things that I’ve been trying to work on, like my overall athleticism. So, on that note, it was great for me.”

Edwards is Moodie’s type of player.

“She loves soccer and she’s a leader,” Moodie says. “She’s not afraid to say what needs to be said. She is a perfectionist, which is a plus and a minus, but she is a captain, as is Megan, and sets that example.”

For the love of soccer

The summer experiences afforded the backbone members of his team to fit snugly with Moodie’s philosophy. It is critical to the coach, who grew up near Edinburgh, Scotland, that he surrounds himself with a team that aspires to a life in the sport.

“They want everyone to go pro, and that’s always been an aspiration of mine,” Edwards says. “They can help me get there. However, we also want to win tournaments. We want to win championships. Being able to play for a program and staff that share the same desires as I do is something I was looking for in the portal, and I found it here.

“Soccer is everything here, and I really like that. We are trying to build a (winning) culture. It starts with winning games and becoming a championship-caliber team.”

However, that love for the game and desire for success must be embraced by everyone: players, coaches, athletic training staff and administrators.

Everyone.

For Moodie, Purdue’s commitment to women’s sports and to soccer was strong enough to attract him from South Alabama.

“I loved South Alabama and we had success there, making the NCAA Tournament often in my tenure,” Moodie says. “But it didn’t take me long to learn that Purdue was eager to make a jump. It has demonstrated its support for women’s athletics, as seen in successful programs like volleyball, and a further example is the $100,000 investment in our team room. We have what we need here, and (sport administrator) Ed Howat is committed to helping make it all happen.”

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Embracing change

Moodie believes it is vital to make changes when you inherit a program that didn’t win a conference match for the two seasons before Moodie’s arrival. Purdue won three league contests last year, showing marked improvement.

“You have to make something happen, where they can see change and they can feel change,” says Moodie, who was offered a scholarship at Carson-Newman in Tennessee, enough of an inducement to get him to leave his native country. “Everything is in place.”

However, that doesn’t mean it will be easy. When Moodie took the job in late 2023, the program had only one recruiting commitment. He scoured the transfer portal and signed international players. Just this year, Purdue was able to pick up Ally Lynch from Clemson, Angelina Thoreson from LSU, Irene Campo from South Alabama and Santa Cruz from Washington State — a clear example of the new world of college athletics and the effects of a coaching transition.

Moodie also had to fend off other college programs attempting to recruit players who were already on Purdue’s roster. Add that to the list of challenges.

“We are really young,” says Moodie, who says he wants to cultivate and secure talent from Indiana, especially in talent-rich Indianapolis. But that will take time.

This year’s roster features one fifth-year player, four seniors, eight juniors, two sophomores and nine freshmen. The Boilermakers hail from 10 different countries: Argentina, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Iceland, Spain, Sweden and Venezuela, along with the United States.

That diverse roster has talent with which to work. Edwards, Santa Cruz and junior defender Zoe Cuneio are on Big Ten watch lists, and Moodie likes the makeup of the squad. Moodie’s style is to play aggressively and put the ball in the net.

“We just want to keep our players and keep them engaged,” says Moodie, who is confident that associate head coach Rob Ward will capably handle the defense. “We want to keep the fans on the edge of their seat every time we get on the ball. We want to be on the front foot. We want to score goals. We want to go forward. And for me, that’s the way.”

And, if you ask Turner, Santa Cruz and Edwards, the trio like the makeup of their coaching staff and the tone Moodie sets.

“He doesn’t take himself too seriously, but pays attention to the smallest of details and doesn’t back down from the high expectations he has for us,” Santa Cruz says. “I struggled with my confidence coming from Washington State, and he really helped me with that. That is the relationship he has with his players.

“We work really hard because we want to. We want to be a team that stands out at Purdue.”

From coach to player and all parts in between, the tone has been set.

Written by Alan Karpick, publisher of GoldandBlack.com

Jeremi London’s engineering experience includes three Purdue degrees

Jeremi London knew she had to follow her calling — but what was she supposed to do about the fact that there were two? 

Her first year at Purdue established her love for engineering. At the same time, she had an unwavering passion for education. Combining both became possible with a specially designed graduate program.  

After studying industrial engineering as an undergraduate, she went on to receive her master’s in the same discipline and a PhD in engineering education. An allegiance to lifelong learning has led to her current roles.  

At Vanderbilt University, she’s an associate professor of mechanical engineering and associate provost for academic opportunity. She’s also sharing her STEM expertise as a consultant on the curriculum team for “Weather Hunters,” a PBS KIDS show strengthening a younger audience’s understanding of Earth science and meteorology. The “Today” show host Al Roker created the series.

Learn more about London’s experience at Purdue and perspective on education, plus what it takes to make an all-new animated series.  

Q: What inspired your path as a scholar? 

A: So many Purdue experiences contributed toward where I am today.  

I loved learning in my classes, but I took any chance I could to follow a brewing passion: teaching. The National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) was founded at Purdue and is an extremely active chapter — I’d tutor peers in it, plus middle school students through their Pre-Collegiate Initiative program.  

Professor Bill Oakes played a crucial role in my decision to stick with engineering and was an unforgettable mentor. During my first year, I told him I was considering switching to education, and he advised that I stick with engineering until I could enter the engineering education graduate program at Purdue, which was brand-new at the time.  

I no longer had to choose between these two amazing things that I loved. I knew from then on that I wanted to earn my PhD. That is the thread of my whole career. To this day, I’m still blending engineering and education.  

Q: How has your role as an educator changed throughout your career? 

A: The traditional view of an educator is someone standing in front of a class, but I have always carried with me that education is about moments of connection. 

When you connect with someone, hard topics become accessible, and misconceptions are disrupted. I’m doing that at different levels.  

At Vanderbilt, I have a faculty appointment as well as an administrative role in the Office of the Provost. This checks a lot of boxes. It gives me the space to be able to work with students while still carrying out a research agenda. 

Right now, my research has led me to audiences I never imagined I’d reach. I’m part of the curriculum team for “Weather Hunters,” from Al Roker Entertainment. As a person who firmly believes students learn more outside of the classroom than in it — partly as a by-product of the amount of time spent in each context — I was thrilled to learn more about this particular setting of informal learning.  

Q: What have been some key takeaways while working on the show? 

A: There are always creative ways to make complex STEM concepts accessible and practical for young learners, but it takes work and a team. Lean into the joy that comes with struggling to find it. The process is worth the reward. 

I have a newfound appreciation for the shows that I watched as a kid. “Arthur,” “Reading Rainbow” and “Sesame Street” were masterful at balancing entertainment and education. Integrating humor and curiosity into a curriculum isn’t easy.  

Creating a series is a long process, and the plot of every show is carefully studied. When introducing a new weather concept, we sat in our weekly meetings and asked, “What story do we want to wrap around this? How do we weave this into a kid’s life? Where would a kid see evaporation or find icicles?” It makes you think differently.

Q: What advice would you give to yourself during your undergraduate years? 

A: There are two messages. First, I’d remind myself that we are complicated human beings. It’s not odd to have interests in things that don’t seem naturally aligned. Don’t give up on finding a way to blend the things that make you whole. 

The second piece of advice is to strive for impact. When I’m asked how I moved from one accomplishment to another, the main explanation is that I am driven to make a social impact. How can I use my gifts, talents and insights for good? That will take you places you couldn’t have imagined. You get tapped for things you didn’t even know existed.

How can I use my gifts, talents and insights for good?

Jeremi London

BSIE ’08, MSIE ’13, PhD engineering education ’14

Q: What did you find on Purdue’s campus that you couldn’t find anywhere else?  

A: Purdue was big enough to accommodate growing interests. I earned all three of my engineering degrees there. That is not the norm. Most people switch up where they go — they have to find someplace new for their next degree. I appreciated that I had so many disciplines to choose from and that there was space for me to pivot.  

Along the way, I learned so much from the people in the organizations I was involved in, like NSBE and Women in Engineering. I had a church group that supported me and a real sense of community. Purdue wasn’t only satisfying my intellectual curiosity. It was a place where I could be a budding person, growing into what I was created to be.

Karen Korellis Reuther aims to help other women build careers in the field where she guided big brands like Nike and Reebok

Karen Korellis Reuther (BA industrial design ’79) remembers the exact moment she decided to become an industrial designer. 

At the time, she was a sophomore in an associate degree program in Purdue’s School of Technology, planning to become an architect who supported her family’s roofing business in Hammond, Indiana. But during a basic drawing course, her professor, Peter Miller, made an observation that changed the course of her life. 

While most of Korellis Reuther’s classmates typically drew flowers and other nature scenes, Miller — an alum of Purdue’s industrial design master’s program — noticed she preferred to draw products like hair dryers, shampoo bottles or deodorant cans. 

“He said, ‘Have you ever heard of industrial design?’ And I said, ‘No, what is that?’ And he said, ‘It’s like an architect for products,’” Korellis Reuther says. “And I still remember that moment. I remember exactly where I was standing. It was at the Michael Golden Labs, which don’t exist anymore. And I said, ‘You can be that?’ And he said, ‘Yes. In fact, there’s a school of industrial design. If you take your drawings over, I’ll call the professor over there and have you meet them.’ And I’ve never looked back.” 

For his part, Miller had no idea what that simple exchange inspired. Korellis Reuther would shift into industrial design, where she advanced to the pinnacle of the athletics industry. Not only did she become a creative director at Nike and vice president, creative direction and innovation at Reebok, but she also worked as a design consultant with other famous footwear brands like Puma, Vans and Timberland. 

Miller carried on with a 40-year teaching career, including 20 years spent at Purdue (1967-87), totally unaware of Korellis Reuther’s accomplishments. At least not until 2019, when David Williams, the chief development officer for Purdue’s College of Liberal Arts, learned of the inspirational role Miller played in Korellis Reuther’s journey and reached out to reconnect the two. 

Nearly 45 years after their pivotal conversation, Korellis Reuther was able to thank Miller for his guidance. 

“We had an hourlong conversation,” Miller says. “It was just like the old expression about riding a bike. We made a connection, and it was just like talking to an old, dear friend. It was just so interesting to hear what her life had become. You have somebody in a class and then they disappear, and for the most part, you just never know these things. So, to find out that she had the success that she had was such a joy for me.”

He said, ‘Have you ever heard of industrial design?’ And I said, ‘No, what is that?’ And he said, ‘It’s like an architect for products.’ And I still remember that moment.

Karen Korellis Reuther (BA industrial design ’79) 

On art professor Peter Miller’s encouragement to consider a career in industrial design 

The encounter was so pleasant, in fact, that Miller and his wife added a side excursion to Boston to visit the Reuthers during a New England vacation in the fall of 2024. At the end of their dinner, which Miller describes as “one of the most wonderful evenings my wife and I remember having,” Korellis Reuther jokes that she and her husband felt a special duty to pick up the check. 

“It was funny, (Miller) said, ‘No, no, no,’” Korellis Reuther recalls with a chuckle, “and I just said, ‘It’s the least I could do for you having given me my career!’”

Designing for women

Long before she became an athletic footwear executive, Korellis Reuther was a product designer at Boston-based computer companies Wang Laboratories and Digital Equipment Corp. In fact, a desktop computer she designed in 1984 made her Wang Laboratories’ first female designer to receive a patent. 

It was a joyous accomplishment, but also a bittersweet one — a running theme throughout her career. She didn’t aspire to be the first or the only woman designer to accomplish something. She wanted to have more women up and down the organizational ladder, including in the boardroom. 

“I always say a couple things: One, we need more women at the table because women won’t forget that women exist,” Korellis Reuther says. “And two, women are not smaller men.” 

That second point has become a focus in the latter stages of her career. 

After successfully applying to Harvard University’s Advanced Leadership Initiative, where she was a fellow in 2021 and 2022, Korellis Reuther joined the faculty as a design critic (essentially an adjunct professor) in Harvard’s Graduate School of Design, teaching in the school’s Master in Design Engineering program and personally concentrating on ending gender bias within the built world. 

Translation: Male and female bodies are not the same. When designing for women, it’s not good enough to simply “shrink it and pink it” — to produce a smaller version of an item built for men’s use and manufacture it in a stereotypically female color. For example, the auto industry’s historical failure to account for gender differences during seat-belt design and safety-testing procedures results in women being far more likely to suffer injury or death in a crash. 

“I believe that in the feminist fight for equality, sameness was emphasized and biological differences were minimized largely due to the fear of these differences being held against women,” says Korellis Reuther, who is in the process of writing a book about this topic titled “Man Made” that Harper Business will publish in 2026. The book is an inside look at how design has left women out and the steps that are necessary to make it right. 

One way to create change is to increase the number of women not just graduating in the field — and others like it, including architecture and engineering — but remaining in it beyond the first few years after graduation. 

So, she decided to do something about it. She and her husband, Dieter, decided to endow a scholarship at Purdue for promising young women in industrial design. The couple offers not only financial support, but mentorship, career advice and professional connections in hopes of building a network that improves retention rates.

“The first patent, although I was very proud of it, also drove what I’m working on now in that the number of women in industrial design and architecture and mechanical and civil engineering as women in practice remains very, very low today,” Korellis Reuther says.

Paying it forward

When the Reuthers launched the scholarship ahead of the 2022-23 academic year, they simply wanted to do something to help the next generation thrive in a field that enabled them to design products for some of the biggest brands in the world. The first scholarship recipient, Isabelle Urashima, is an innovation designer at IBM today. The 2023-24 recipient, Cecilia Sanchez, is now an industrial designer for White River Marine Group. 

Entering the third year of the scholarship’s existence, the Reuthers had no clue — nobody at Purdue did — about the stressful circumstances Anna Blessinger and her family faced when the industrial design program’s leaders selected Blessinger as the 2024-25 recipient. 

Anna’s mom, Tara, had been diagnosed with lymphoma only a month before the family learned about the scholarship that would cover nearly all of the costs associated with Anna’s senior year at Purdue. The unexpected gift allowed them to focus solely on Tara’s care without taking on the additional stress of student loans to cover Anna’s college expenses. 

“She has a rare form of cancer that is incurable, so she will not have any remission. She can go into chemo, and then it will decrease some of the cancer, but it will never eliminate it,” Blessinger explains. “We’ve been trying to get her into different studies, and there has been quite a bit of a financial burden on the family, but everyone’s been handling it really well. And I told Karen that as well: For that (scholarship) to have happened was such a blessing for our family. It saved us from a lot of struggle going into my last year at Purdue.” 

While this was a different occupational barrier from what the Reuthers envisioned when they endowed the scholarship, the circumstances still fell very much in line with the message of persistence that the Reuthers hoped to convey. 

“Although I had never experienced what Anna did during my studies at Purdue, I could relate,” Korellis Reuther says. “I’ve had moments that made me pause and wonder if I should keep going. Experiences like that can cause you to stop. It may cause you to question whether you’re talented enough to do this, whether you’re strong enough to do this. 

“All I knew is that through the scholarship and the support that Dieter and I provided to Anna, we wanted to give her more reasons to say yes than no. What she accomplished and her level of talent is really amazing. I can’t wait to see what she does next.” 

After all, you never know what a bit of encouragement might spark. Korellis Reuther is living proof.

A world of possibilities

At Nike, Korellis Reuther felt like she received a PhD in brand-building thanks to the company’s universal focus on athlete performance. At Reebok, she helped prove the value of a well-defined brand mark when she led a redesign of its corporate identity using a single, established logo — a change that contributed to a 20% sales increase in the very first quarter. 

She and Dieter want to share such industry knowledge with young designers capable of changing the field for the better. Designers like Anna Blessinger. 

Blessinger interned last summer at Wilson Sporting Goods in Chicago, where she first gained an awareness of the design possibilities that exist within the athletics realm. She went on to design a marathon running shoe as part of her award-winning senior thesis, prompting Korellis Reuther to observe that she has the chops to work in athletic footwear design if she chooses to do so. 

And perhaps she will someday. But for now, the spring 2025 graduate is focused on her first job at Whirlpool, designing mixers for the company’s KitchenAid brand at its headquarters in Benton Harbor, Michigan. 

She loves working in a field where she could design either shoes or mixers, or countless other products, over the course of a long career. Korellis Reuther’s accomplishments prove that point, revealing how far designers can go when they bet on themselves. 

“Having her as an example for saying yes to opportunities, it helps me want to say yes to the opportunities that I am getting now,” Blessinger says. “She’s just been a great example for what life could be.”

Barry Odom is a man in motion. He looks at his watch. He checks his buzzing phone. Competition for his time and attention is fierce.

“What time do I get up?” says Odom, repeating a question. “The alarm usually goes off at 4:30 in the morning. And always to music.”

Odom sips his coffee. He’s trying to kick Diet Coke.

Breakfast? There’s no time. But Odom always says a prayer and reads from the Bible.

“I’m trying to read it in a year,” Odom says. “I’ll send both of my sons a scripture and what I thought of it. And I tell them I love them and to have a great day.”

Odom is out the door and whirls down the hall of the Kozuch Football Performance Complex. He has a meeting — he seemingly always has a meeting — in a tightly orchestrated daily schedule that leaves no room for fluff.

That blue-collar mindset was hatched during a meteoric rise through the coaching ranks that has him already working on his third head coaching job at only 48 years old.

Odom has been there and done that, working as a high school coach, grad assistant, director of recruiting, director of operations, assistant coach, and coordinator — not to mention his roles as a father, son, brother, husband, and friend.

His new label: Head Coach of Purdue Football.

“I just really think that the way Barry goes about his work, the way his staff will go about their work, the personality that our program will take on immediately will resonate with the type of young players and young guys that will ultimately lead us to success,” Purdue Executive Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Mike Bobinski says. “And that’s how we get it done here.”

Odom has work to do. He knows it. You know it. We all know it. There’s no sense in rehashing the details of the 2024 season. Odom won’t go there. His eyes are forward. And he likes what he sees — even if he doesn’t quite know what to expect from a roster chock-full of questions as the 2025 season dawns.

At the top of the queries: How will Odom blend a roster dotted with more than 80 newcomers?

“It’s exhilarating,” says Odom with a smile.

Covering his tracks

For a man to know where he is going, he has to know where he has been.

Barry Stephen Odom traces his roots to the dusty plains of Oklahoma, the second of Cheryl and Bob Odom’s three sons, each four years apart: Brad (Purdue’s director of recruiting), Barry, and Brian (inside linebackers coach at Washington).

“I look back now, the opportunities they provided for us were unbelievable,” Odom says. “We didn’t have any money. I didn’t know that. But we always had what we needed.”

Bob Odom worked in the oil industry until a recession led to his job loss, after which he became a teacher at an alternative school. Cheryl was an elementary school educator and principal.

“It was a very disciplined household, but it was also a loving household,” Odom says. “I knew my parents loved me, but you knew what you’re supposed to do, when you’re supposed to do it, how you’re supposed to do it. There were no gray areas.”

Young Barry was precocious, always trying to keep up with his older brother Brad.

“There was always something going on at our house,” Brad Odom says. “We lived on a hill and had a lined 50-yard field we called ‘Odom Field.”

They played tackle football. (Did you really think they played touch?)

“Everyone played there,” Brad Odom says. “We played until it was dark or someone got hurt.”

On Sundays, the Odoms cleaned up and went to church. You could find the family at First Methodist Church. Mom played the piano and organ. The Odoms always — always — sat in the third pew from the front on the right-hand side of the church.

While his parents taught him right from wrong, and the church had its set of lessons, Barry still veered off course at times.

“I got in lots of trouble, but not nearly as much trouble as my older brother,” Odom says. “So, I learned from him how close to that line you could get, but not to touch that line.”

Odom came of age in tiny Maysville, Oklahoma. You have to squint to see it on a map. The family moved to nearby Ada — an hour east on Highway 19 — for his senior year of high school.

“It was a bigger school, more opportunities,” Odom says.

By the time Odom hit Ada — a town of 16,000 located 51 miles southeast of Oklahoma City — he was a known commodity across the state. Odom was a hard-hitting linebacker and rugged running back with exceptional speed, which allowed him to double as a track star who competed across the nation.

“Barry could run a legit 4.4 (40-yard dash),” Brad Odom says.

Rival high schools, Ardmore or McAlester, had no chance vs. Odom and Ada High in 1994 during a dominating run on the gridiron that resonates among locals today.

“Undefeated against them, in case anybody’s wondering,” Odom says. “State champs, too.”

When he wasn’t beating Ardmore or McAlester, Odom was dreaming of beating Nebraska and Texas as a member of the Oklahoma Sooners. Odom loved Barry Switzer’s Sooners. Every kid in the state who buckled a chinstrap and played on Friday nights did.

“Brian Bosworth was my guy,” Odom says.

He even had the Boz’s signature Mohawk-style haircut.

“Absolutely,” Odom says. “I know it’s hard to believe now.”

Odom raises his hat to show a mostly bald head.

Timing is everything in football recruiting, and with Oklahoma and Oklahoma State being in coaching transitions, neither wanted Odom. Arkansas became a top option, but the Hogs passed as Odom was coming off a knee injury in his senior season.

That left Missouri, which would take him as is. And it was a prescient choice that changed Odom’s football and personal life forever.

The way that returnees have come back and worked, the additions that we’ve made to our team, the opportunity is there for us to create momentum early on.

head coach barry odom on the 2025 Boilermakers, who lead the FBS with 54 incoming transfers

Romance in Columbia

Credit a former Missouri teammate with sparking the romance between Barry and his now-wife, Tia.

Tiger defensive tackle Jeff Marriott — who also lived with Odom — had a class with Tia Trump as a freshman. Odom noticed the two together once and asked to be introduced.

“She eventually decided to go on a date with me,” Odom says. “Took a while.”

The first date?

“There was a mall in Columbia, and attached to the mall was a movie theater, and then close by was a Chili’s. It was perfect,” Odom says. “We went on Thursday night because it was $1 night. We saw ‘Dante’s Peak.'”

Odom and Tia have been together ever since, raising three children: JT, a student at Purdue, Garyt, a freshman quarterback for the Boilermakers, and Anna Lockwood, who is entering the fifth grade.

Home is Odom’s getaway.

“He has to be super organized running a football program, something as big as that,” Tia says. “But at home, when he’s here, he’s here.”

An escape from football for Odom: cooking.

“It began with smoking meat,” says Tia. “And I got him a Big Green Egg smoker. He likes that. He likes cooking outside.

“And he loves a good crayfish boil.”

While cooking, Odom may listen to music. It could be classic rock, or country, old or new.

“He likes Chris Stapleton, Joe Purdy, Jamey Johnson,” says Tia.

Tia Odom can appreciate it. She grew up in Kahoka, a small town in northeast Missouri.

“I am fortunate in many ways,” Barry Odom says. “One of them is because our kids are healthy and happy, and I’ll never lose sight of that.”

Hard, smart and tough

A thin smile creases Barry Odom’s face as he discusses his past. He’s a wedge of man who still looks capable of stuffing a running back in the A-gap on 4th-and-1.

Odom often did that as a powder keg linebacker at Missouri from 1996-99. He always says he’s six feet tall.

“Get a driver’s license, I’d say I’m six feet tall,” says Odom, trying to extinguish any doubt.

He’s not six feet tall. But Odom compensates with cast-in-fire will. He’s the epitome of an underdog. Just ask him.

“Every day of my life, I’ve taken that approach,” he says.

The late Larry Smith and Gary Pinkel both saw it. The two Mizzou head football coaches helped forge Odom’s life on and off the field. What you see today is mainly because of Smith and Pinkel.

It was Pinkel who gave Odom his breakthrough in college coaching in 2003 as a graduate assistant for the Tigers. And it was Smith who signed Odom to play at Missouri in 1996.

Odom is hard-wired with Pinkel and Smith. Each was forged in a bygone, black-and-white era. Each was proudly old-school and uncompromising in their beliefs.

Hard work gets the job done. But there is also a loving touch, too. Odom cares.

“Players will respect him, and he’s very sincere about how he takes care of all his players … meaning he’s like a father figure,” Pinkel says. “That’s the way he is. That’s his personality.”

And then there is the grind of the profession. Odom loves the grind he learned from Smith and Pinkel, the endless hours, long days.

The Odom way can be summed up succinctly: hard, smart and tough. It’s the mantra he brands on anyone who crosses his path.

Smith and Pinkel formed the man now prowling the Purdue sideline. This is the same too-short-for-the-Big 12, thick-necked, barrel-chested linebacker who wrung every last tackle out of his football soul.

Odom has a legacy of helping Smith pull Mizzou to respectability after years of languishing. By the time Odom bit down on his mouthpiece for the last time, the Tigers were a two-time bowl team.

Smith took a chance on Odom, signing the Oklahoma roughneck and quickly moving him from running back to linebacker.

“I saw how Coach Smith changed the narrative of the program around the way he recruited and the toughness and discipline and consistency,” Odom says. “He was able to capture momentum in the locker room with a lot of like-minded guys that got it going.”

Pinkel? He’s the man who gave Odom a chance to work as a college coach.

“Gary Pinkel was as disciplined and as consistent as anybody that I’ve ever had a chance to be around,” Odom says. “If he came in and went to our staff meeting this morning, it would be exactly like his was …

“There’s a way, a structure, and if you’ll do it and you’ll live by it and you won’t cut corners, the process ends up taking over and winning. And that’s where I learned this.”

Stacking days

Barry Odom stares out the window of his office in the Kozuch Football Performance Complex. From where he sits, he has a good view of his other office: Ross-Ade Stadium.

He’s taken off the lid on his tenure as the Boilermakers’ 38th head coach. There is no remaining shell from the team that, just three scant seasons and two head coaches ago, played for the Big Ten championship. The roster? It’s been gutted, stripped down to the studs.

Can Odom — the only new coach in the Big Ten in 2025 — surpass pundits’ low expectations and reverse a losing tide that has seen Purdue produce just four winning records since Joe Tiller retired after the 2008 season?

“This team is completely different than anybody on the outside knows,” Odom says. “The way that returnees have come back and worked, the additions that we’ve made to our team, the opportunity is there for us to create momentum early on.”

Odom is just what this program needs, trying to move past the last two seasons. He personifies Purdue — a school whose reputation is rooted in working-class disciplines like engineering, agriculture and science.

Since his boots hit the ground in West Lafayette in December, Odom has been chirping about “stacking days.” Ask anyone walking the halls of Kozuch, strolling through Mollenkopf Athletic Center, hanging out in the weight room or walking through the Village on State Street.

“Day one, practice one, everybody’s going to be excited to go practice, go to meetings, and everybody’s gonna be attentive,” Odom says. “Can you capture that and do it day after day, day after day, consistently at the level we need to win?”

It’s all about putting in the work to get better one day at a time … every day.

It’s about stacking days.

“We’re ready,” Odom says.

Written by Tom Dienhart, who has covered football for GoldandBlack.com since 2019

Be there for the dawn of the Barry Odom era! Single-game tickets for the 2025 Purdue football season are still on sale. Click here to find a price or plan that works for you.

Boilermaker and sports leader Kara Allen has met senseless tragedy with courage and a relentless drive to help others

In 2025, Purdue celebrates 50 years since the launch of its women’s athletic programs. As a part of that important milestone, the university spotlights Boilermaker women and alumni and their contributions in the sports industry: 

What does it take to lead in times of crisis?   

Empathy. Proximity. Strength. Humility. Joy. Purpose. Urgency.

For Kara Allen (BA child development and family studies ’05), these are the guiding principles that have helped her support communities in leadership roles for almost 20 years.  

“It’s not about who talks the loudest; it’s about who shows up. It’s about who listens. It’s about who stays when it’s hard,” she says. 

As a founding board member and director of strategy and impact for Playmakers Nashville, these are the values that continue to shape and inspire her work in sports. She says, “Playmakers allows me to use years of experience building, strategizing and leading programs to help create a community dedicated to igniting the power of women in sports on the field, behind the scenes and every level in between.”  

This role is a culmination of Allen’s experience in sports. From the beginning, sports — basketball, in particular — have shaped much of her life.

Boilermaker, born and raised 

Growing up near Greenfield, Indiana, in a family of Boilermakers, Allen became immersed in both basketball and Purdue from an early age. She had the opportunity to attend multiple basketball camps at Purdue, where she was coached by Boilermaker athletes like alumna and current head coach of the Indiana Fever Stephanie White. 

As a teenager, Allen was the captain of her state championship-winning basketball team at Cathedral High School, led by Linda Bamrick. This experience taught her about leadership, trust, consistency and showing up — attributes reinforced by her coach’s supportive, accepting mentorship style that Allen has sought to emulate.  

“I think that playing basketball, and winning state championships, specifically, was about understanding that winning was very little about bringing a group of the best players together and very much about bringing a group of people together that brought out the best in each other,” she says.  

Later, Allen attended Purdue as a proud third-generation Boilermaker. Majoring in child development and family studies was a pivotal choice from the get-go. 

Through her freshman-year classes, like an introductory communication and public speaking class, she learned the power of storytelling — a skill that helped her become a better leader. 

She says, “I have a deep respect for legacy and tradition and an insatiable appetite for finding new, different ways to do things for social good.” 

This drive and Allen’s interest in storytelling were further reinforced that year, when the tragic Sept. 11 terrorist attacks took place. 

“I asked myself, ‘How do I make sense of something that was so senseless?’” Allen says. “Voice is such a powerful thing to have. Our word is maybe the only thing we have, and so we have to use it very, very carefully and very intentionally.” 

Showing up for Uvalde  

After Purdue, Allen went on to receive a master’s degree in social work from the University of Southern California and a doctorate in educational leadership for social justice from Loyola Marymount University. She also held various roles in education and nonprofits — like working as a special education teacher in the Oakland Unified School District — leading youth and communities through hard transitions and recovery.  

In 2021, she became the chief impact officer for the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs — a first-of-its-kind role in U.S. professional sports. This role aligned her experience in sports leadership, love of basketball, educational background and passion for community impact work. 

“I do really like to win, but I don’t just really like to win games — I want to win at what really matters,” she says. 

For Allen, that meant serving San Antonio and its surrounding communities in their greatest times of need. Just a year after she joined the Spurs, that community was Uvalde –– a town that faced immense grief and shock after the devastating mass shooting at Robb Elementary School, where 19 schoolchildren and two teachers were killed and 17 more were injured.

In response to this national tragedy, Allen and her team led the creation of the Sport for Healing Fund, aimed at investing in and providing long-term trauma and healing-centered care for youth and families in Uvalde. The Spurs were recognized as the Humanitarian Team of the Year at the 2023 ESPY Awards for their timely efforts.  

“It was such an honor to be a tiny seed in that healing,” she says. “The young people in Uvalde remind us that legacy isn’t what you leave behind; it’s what you build together.” 

Making space for future leaders 

Now at Playmakers, Allen continues to show up with this same tenacity — for women like her who want to advance in the sports industry. 

“I think if we’re serious about building a future where the game lasts, not just grows, and not just for this moment, we have to make different choices about who we invest in to lead it,” she says. “Playmakers lets me plant seeds for the future I believe in.”

Allen also believes that her background and foundation in social work have been incredible tools to help her influence change.  

“My ability to lead in times of crisis is more important to me than anything else, both for community and for people,” she says. “Community can mean my team; it can mean the organization and the community yet to be defined. I did not choose between heart and strategy. I built a career that proves that those belong together.”

Purdue and The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis are both essential to the Dodson family’s story

Purdue is proud to sponsor The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis during its centennial anniversary — together, we celebrate 100 years of joy, wonder and curiosity. 

For the past 20 years, Jim and Dori Dodson have had at least one family member at Purdue each semester.  

It started with their eldest son, Patrick, in 2005. All four of their children plus nieces and nephews have passed the baton since. Soon, their grandchildren could continue the legacy.  

“Purdue has played an important part since the beginning,” Jim says. 

Jim and Dori both graduated from the university with business degrees in 1983. They met while volunteering for a club during their freshman year and have been giving back ever since.  

“I always tell people, ‘The more you give, the more you get,’” Dori says. “My advice is to be involved.” 

With decades of experience volunteering in the Indianapolis community, the Dodsons inspire others to work hard and help their neighbors. They’ve worked with leading organizations like The Children’s Museum and the 500 Festival, started a foundation and raised a family full of Boilermakers.

“We both believe that the giver always receives more than the recipient of a gift,” Jim says.

Lending a hand at the world’s largest children’s museum 

Raised in homes that prioritized service, both Jim and Dori were encouraged to pitch in from an early age. For Dori, one of the most influential volunteering opportunities was at The Children’s Museum.

2025 marks the museum’s 100th anniversary. Without the help of volunteers, the past century wouldn’t have been possible — and they’re the driving force behind what the next 100 years look like at the institution. Dori grew up watching her mother, Rosie Semler, work with the museum, and eventually she became president of The Children’s Museum Guild. The Guild is an all-volunteer organization that’s supported efforts since 1933.  

Every year, the Guild presents the museum’s biggest fundraiser: its haunted house. Specially designed to offer spooky surprises for visitors of all ages (including well-lit areas and milder scares for young kids), the haunted house takes a village to put together. Semler was the haunted house head witch, and Dori eventually took on the same role. Jim served on the museum’s board of trustees and has also done his fair share of haunting at the fundraiser.  

“One of the reasons we love the museum is because of the friends we’ve met volunteering,” Jim says. “You connect with other people who want to make sure it’s always a resource for the community.” The museum is ever evolving. Dori introduced an exhibit in the Playscape area. Another Guild member suggested a collaboration with artist Dale Chihuly that resulted in the museum’s iconic glass sculptures. Since their daughter has joined the Guild and continued their legacy, they’re still close to the collaborative effort required to keep everything going.

So many people work together to bring the best exhibits to Indianapolis.

Dori Dodson

BS marketing ’83 

As much as the Dodsons enjoy volunteering at the museum, they also enjoy engaging with its contents. Every year, they take their children and grandchildren to the WinterFaire, where they race down slides and see different exhibits. “So many people work together to bring the best exhibits to Indianapolis,” Dori says. “Everyone in this area has a stake in it, from scientists to sports teams.”  

One of the family’s contributions is kept safe in the museum’s collection of over 130,000 artifacts. Jim’s aunt gave a hobby horse that once belonged to his great-grandfather. It’s now part of the museum. “They take care of things,” Jim says. “The museum is an amazing place to go.”

Contributing to the Indianapolis community

Around Indiana’s capital city, Jim and Dori have built a life they love. They’re close to extended family — Dori is from Indianapolis and Jim is from Westfield. Their local network is made up of relatives, friends and colleagues from their many pursuits.  

Jim is the CEO of locally based The Dodson Group Inc. and Spendbridge, and Dori is celebrating 27 years teaching preschool and helping their church. Following lifelong passions for building businesses and giving back, Jim started the Sycamore Foundation, a nonprofit organization that helps other nonprofits succeed.  

Since 1992, the Sycamore Foundation has set the stage for other volunteers to thrive. For the first 20 years, it hosted a golf tournament where 10 nonprofits could register volunteers to raise money. The Sycamore Foundation covered the golf course, meals and event logistics, and the nonprofits only had to find participants. After outgrowing the golf model, it switched to a walking event, “Walking for Dreams.” This year, over 1,000 walkers represented 20 nonprofits and raised almost $1 million.

In addition to serving on the museum’s board, Jim has been director of the 500 Festival, Indiana Philanthropy Alliance and Catholic Community Foundation, and board chair of the Central Indiana Police Foundation, Indianapolis Young Life, Day Spring Homeless Shelter and Bishop Chatard High School. He was selected as the recipient of the Michael Carroll Award from the Indiana Business Journal in 2009. His momentum started at a young age. When he graduated from Purdue, he received the G.A. Ross Award, given annually to an outstanding graduate. 

When they’re not busy in Indianapolis, the Dodsons love to visit another important place in their story — West Lafayette.

Coming back to Purdue

Both say that Purdue was their first choice for college. Since Dori’s parents and grandfather were alumni, it was all she knew. “When you start going to football games at age 5, you never look anywhere else,” she says. “You feel comfortable, and you feel at home.”

During their undergraduate years, they spent a lot of time together between their shared business classes, participation in the Greek community and membership in organizations like Omicron Delta Kappa and Mortar Board. They started dating their senior year.

Now they return to campus for tailgates and to see their family forming its own memories at the university. It’s a legacy wrapped up in old gold and black and one that continues to instill the importance of lending a hand.

“Volunteering is ingrained in us,” Dori says. “Give back and make places even better than how you found them.”

Leighellen Landskov’s communication degree helped turn her love of books and a successful Instagram page into a career. 

Leighellen Landskov is a social media superstar.  

Her bookstagram account, her Instagram page dedicated to book recommendations and author interviews, has amassed over 26,000 followers, and Landskov has been featured on Oprah’s Book Club. She has built a thriving online community from the ground up. 

But when she decided she wanted to work in publishing, she quickly realized neither her experience nor her degree in marine biology were enough to get her there. She needed a degree in communication. Enter her son, Jacoby, a fellow Boilermaker studying at Purdue University, who told her about Purdue Global.  

Read, in her own words, about her journey earning her bachelor’s in communication and how it helped turn her passion into a career.

It has been such a cool year. I can’t believe it all happened.  

I had a unique perspective on this journey because, first of all, my son attends Purdue in person, so I knew his experience. I have another son who attends a different online education program, and I saw him struggle with how solely online it was. There weren’t textbooks, live lectures with professors or any classroom time. I loved having those things with Purdue Global. Purdue Global is magical. It’s perfectly done.

From marine biologist to Instagram influencer

After high school, I wanted to be a marine biologist without knowing that most people sit in a laboratory doing research. I thought, “That’s what I have to do?” After graduating, I went on to do marketing. I ended up making it all the way to national merchandising manager. 

Once I had kids, I opened my own photography studio. I also started a Bible study out of my house, and I was always recommending books. One of the teenagers in the Bible study told me, “You should start a bookstagram.” They even helped me come up with the name and logo. 

In 2020 the world shut down and I wasn’t able to photograph any events. But people were on the internet and were reading again. My bookstagram took off in a way I never expected. It was perfect timing.  

In 2023, as my kids were graduating, I knew I didn’t want to do photography anymore. I chose that when it allowed me to stay home during the day, but with my kids grown up, I didn’t want to work evenings and weekends.  

I decided I wanted to work in publishing. I started applying, but employers were asking me, “Do you have a communications or English degree?” All I could say was no — my bachelor’s degree was in science. Despite the fact that I have a lot of experience in the literary field, I needed to have that degree.   
 
That’s when my son noticed an ad during a Purdue basketball game for Purdue Global. He said, “Mom, you should go back to school.”

Purdue Global is magical. It’s perfectly done.

Leighellen Landskov

BS communication ’24, Purdue Global

How Purdue Global made it possible

I kept saying to myself, “How am I going to do this?” I was unsure and nervous because I hadn’t been to school for what felt like 100 years. I was overwhelmed, but Purdue Global’s advisors were amazing. I thought it was going to be impossible, and they made it possible. They were able to get in touch with the university I attended years ago, and I got credit for everything. Instead of having to go for four years, I was able to finish in two. 

It’s easy to think you’re stuck where you are or you’re too old to change or try something new. But if you have the drive and the commitment and the desire, you can do it. 

Purdue Global allowed me to be a good mom and employee and still get my degree. I got everything I dreamed of getting, and I got it faster than I expected. There’s a team of people at Purdue Global encouraging and helping you along the way, and I never felt alone.

I got everything I dreamed of getting.

Leighellen Landskov

BS communication ’24, Purdue Global

A powerful graduation and starting a new job

Graduation felt remarkably inspiring. Realizing you’re in this room with all these people and you know that they were managing a full-time job and raising kids, too. I love how they shouted out graduates who were in the military and who were the first to go to college in their whole family. It was powerful. 

The whole weekend was special. They had events planned and photo ops set up around campus. The ceremony is a legit graduation ceremony. I was even in the same auditorium as my son when he graduated from Purdue University a few weeks later. 

My plan was to put my résumé together after graduation and go back to all the contacts I had at the publishing jobs I was initially rejected from. But while I was earning my degree, we moved to Texas. There is a local bookstore here, and a book buyer position opened. I decided to throw my hat in the ring. After interviewing, they created a whole new position for me based on what I know and who I know. 

Now I could continue here or take these skills to a future job. I get to combine my online life with my in-person life. It wasn’t something I expected or planned, but it’s a great way to be immersed in my community while sharing books I love. I have a degree in the field, and now I’ll have book buying experience that can move me forward. 

It’s been great to show my kids the importance of higher education — that you can have a startup and be creative. But when you want to go farther, whether you want to be a manager or an executive, you need a degree. I’m showing my kids it’s never too late to figure out what you want to be or do, and go after it.  

I have another son who’s still figuring it out. I’m his biggest cheerleader. I say to him, “You can do this. If I can do it at my age, you can do it at your age.” I hope my journey has inspired my kiddos to not give up. I’m so proud of all of them.